Northwell Health opens Center for Bioelectronic Medicine
President and CEO of Northwell, Michael J. Dowling, says, 'Northwell Health prides itself on offering patients innovative treatment. Bioelectronic medicine has shown benefit to patients in clinical trials, and with the development and expansion of the field, we have an opportunity to offer this cutting-edge treatment to our patients. Northwell's Center for Bioelectronic Medicine is a unique destination where doctors, scientists and patients will explore and potentially benefit from today's medical advancements.'
The scientific foundation of bioelectronic medicine stems from research conducted by , president and CEO of , Northwell's home of medical research, and author of the new book – . For nearly four decades, Dr. Tracey and collaborators published their discoveries about a link between the brain, immune system, and inflammation and whether or not their connection could be modulated through technology and electrical signals, like vagus nerve stimulation. Today, bioelectronic medicine clinical trials are conducted at Northwell and around the world. In 2023, Northwell was a site for the SetPoint Medical RESET-RA study, which evaluated a novel treatment option for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) using neuroimmune modulation, a therapy that uses electrical stimulation to modulate functions of the immune system.
Dawn Steiner, one of the RESET-RA trial participants, has firsthand experience with the debilitating effects of RA. For more than a decade, the 58-year-old speech and language pathologist from Massapequa, NY, felt excruciating pain that often left her bedridden. An avid Mets fan and concertgoer, Dawn found herself unable to enjoy the things she loved – or even conduct everyday tasks, like brushing her teeth or tying her shoes – because of her RA flare-ups or her medication side effects. Over the years, she tried more than eight biological RA medications that often didn't relieve her symptoms and caused her to feel troubling side effects. After seeing family and friends benefit from enrolling in clinical trials for other conditions, Dawn enrolled in the SetPoint Medical trial, and today, many of her symptoms are relieved.
'A year after receiving this therapy, I feel as good as I did before my RA diagnosis – like a different person. I feel better, and I'm able to just feel healthy and do all the things that make me happy without those awful, awful medications,' Steiner said. 'To the researchers, thank you! I'm so glad you looked into a different type of technology. From my perspective, this is the future of rheumatoid arthritis treatment.'
The new Center will aim to connect participants like Dawn to bioelectronic medicine clinical trials. Current bioelectronic medicine trials underway at Northwell include treatments for pediatric inflammatory bowel disease, methods to stop excessive bleeding, treatments for post-traumatic stress disorders and brain implant applications to reverse paralysis.
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