Prolira

Prolira BV is a medical technology company focused on addressing acute encephalopathy and delirium in hospitalized patients. Originating in 2015 as a spin-off from the University Medical Center Utrecht in the Netherlands, the company was founded by Rutger van Merkerk and Annemarie Willems. Van Merkerk's background is in strategic technology and regulation, while Willems specializes in bringing medical innovations to market. The company was established to commercialize a discovery made at the medical center: that a simplified EEG could rapidly and easily diagnose a delirium.

The firm targets a significant and costly issue in healthcare, as acute brain failure affects millions of patients annually, leading to poor outcomes and high costs. Prolira’s business model centers on the sale of its core product, the DeltaScan® Brain State Monitor, and the recurring revenue from single-use disposable electrode patches required for each test. This positions brain state monitoring as a routine vital sign check, similar to monitoring the heart or lungs. The company serves hospital departments, with customers already established in the Netherlands, Germany, Austria, and the UK.

Prolira's flagship product, the DeltaScan®, is a non-invasive medical device that provides an objective assessment of a patient's brain state at the bedside. It consists of a monitor and a single-use, three-electrode patch that simplifies the traditional electroencephalogram (EEG) process. Using proprietary AI-powered algorithms, the system analyzes EEG signals to detect characteristic brain wave patterns of acute encephalopathy, delivering results within minutes. This allows healthcare professionals to detect delirium earlier and more accurately than with subjective methods, enabling timely intervention. A key benefit is the potential to reduce the length of hospital stays, as demonstrated in a study involving 850 patients. The DeltaScan® has received EU-MDR approval in 2020 and FDA 510(k) clearance in 2023, paving the way for commercial expansion in Europe and the United States.

Keywords: delirium detection, acute encephalopathy, brain state monitoring, EEG device, medical diagnostics, hospital care, patient monitoring, cognitive impairment, MedTech, objective assessment, vital signs, DeltaScan, neuro-monitoring, post-operative care, intensive care unit, healthcare costs, AI in healthcare, clinical decision support, non-invasive diagnostics, patient safety, brain health, medical device, Rutger van Merkerk, Annemarie Willems, UMC Utrecht spin-off