The Swiss Medtech Award goes to Rheon Medical and Coat-X

Rheon Medical’s eyeWatch system is currently revolutionising the surgical treatment of glaucoma. Glaucoma is a term used to describe a group of diseases that affects the eyes. One common symptom is that the optic nerve becomes increasingly and irreversibly damaged – and in the worst case, patients can lose their sight entirely. Excessive pressure inside the eye is the biggest risk factor for developing glaucoma, and this is precisely where the innovation comes into play. Once the eyeWatch has been implanted, the patient's intraocular pressure can be easily monitored and corrected with a few simple external adjustments during routine check-ups.

The key component of this worldwide first non-invasive pressure equalization system to treat glaucoma is its rotating magnetic plate. The innovative coating technology of Coat-X ensures that the magnetic plate is protected from erosion by body fluids – an important prerequisite for the implantation of an eyeWatch.

Swiss Medtech Day provides the perfect stage to present this coveted prize for innovation worth CHF 50,000, sponsored by the Lichtsteiner Foundation, the Straumann Group and Ypsomed. The two winners of the Swiss Medtech Award 2020 Rheon Medical and Coat-X, both start-ups from western Switzerland, were enthusiastically applauded for their collaborative achievements by the 500 conference attendees.

«Switzerland is one of the world's most attractive locations to develop and produce complex, innovative medical products. The joint achievement of Rheon Medical and Coat-X, who have both been honoured today, is a prime example. It illustrates an ideal synergy of engineering, microtechnology, and materials technology,» says an impressed Peter Biedermann, Managing Director of Swiss Medtech.

(Press release / SK)

Picture: Nikos Stergiopoulos, Rheon Medical (left) & Andreas Hogg, Coat-X. (Swiss Medtech)