An experimental medical device offers restored speech to patients with cerebral palsy and spinal cord injuries.
Laronix, a medtech company with operations in White Plains and Australia, is collaborating with Burke Neurological Institute, also in White Plains, on a year-long study of its breakthrough Bionic Voice technology, designed to enhance vocal communication.
Speech is a fundamental mode of expression and connection. Yet for individuals with cerebral palsy (CP) or spinal cord injury (SCI), communicating effectively can be profoundly challenging. Up to 90% of individuals with CP experience difficulties with voice and speech, and those with SCI also frequently encounter significant communication impairments.
Traditionally, communication solutions for these conditions have been limited to text-to-speech devices or outdated technologies producing robotic voices. Laronix has developed a smart, noninvasive device that promises to transform communication for individuals with CP and SCI by mimicking human vocal folds, generating a personalized voice and offering markedly superior communication quality compared to existing devices.
The Business Council of Westchester’s Westchester Innovation Network (WIN) facilitated the new partnership between Laronix and the Burke Neurological Institute. The WIN initiative aims to integrate innovative solutions with local organizations for testing and adoption.
The collaboration between Laronix and Burke Neurological Institute is supervised by Kathleen Friel, Ph.D., associate professor of neuroscience at Burke, who leads a lab focused on improving function in people with CP, offering both professional expertise and personal insight as someone with a speech impairment caused by CP. She will oversee the study evaluating Laronix’s Bionic Voice device among individuals living with CP or SCI. Representing Laronix in this endeavor is co-founder Mousa Ahmadi, Ph.D.
Given that approximately 3,000 individuals in Westchester County are affected by CP or SCI, this initiative holds immense potential to improve the quality of life for many.
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