ReGelTec: Curing Degenerative Disease with a Percutaneous Treatment

ReGelTec is developing the next-generation of spinal implants to percutaneously treat lower back pain

ReGelTec is developing the next-gen of interverbal disc implants to alleviate lower back pain. The company’s core offering, HYDRAFIL™, is a percutaneous disc augmentation treatment— delivered via a 17-gauge needle—to treat degenerative disc disease. The HYDRAFIL™ solution is heated and injected into the nucleus of an intervertebral disc. As the HYDRAFIL™ cools, it solidifies as a homogenous solid mass between the vertebrae to eliminate pain. Since the implant is a hydrogel that has mechanical properties similar to the normal disc tissues, it helps restore the natural biomechanics of the disc and improve spinal alignment.

This innovative treatment technique is the brainchild of Dr. Anthony M. Lowman, co-founder, and CTO of ReGelTec, who has spent the last decade in developing a hydrogel that exhibits two significant features required for commercial success: replacement of nucleus with a biomaterial that will not expulse from the disc and a percutaneous delivery method. On that note, Niland exclaims, “We are at the cusp of changing people’s lives and impacting it in a big way.”

At the core of its success is ReGelTec’s team of proficient executives and research scientists that are resolute in proving a non-surgical option to lower back pain patients who fail conservative care. Driven by this conviction, in less than a year, ReGelTec has developed a robust patent portfolio, completed bench and large animal proof-of-principle testing and raised seed funding of $2 million. Looking ahead, ReGelTec is raising a Series A round to fund its early feasibility clinical trial in Colombia which is expected to start in early 2020. With a vision to eliminate pain from degenerative disc diseases without performing invasive spinal surgeries, ReGelTec’s ultimate strategy to climb the success of the healthcare ladder has begun.