Pain Care Labs Awarded $1.7 Million Grant From NIH HEAL Initiative

ATLANTA, Oct. 28, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Pain Care Labs, an industry leader in noninvasive pain relief devices, announced today that it has received a $1.7 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) as part of HEAL Initiative (Helping to End Addiction Long-term). NIH HEAL aims to improve treatments for chronic pain, curb the rates of opioid use disorder and overdose and achieve long-term recovery from opioid addiction. The grant will allow Pain Care Labs to address opioid use disorder with the continued development and clinical evaluation of multimodal neuromodulation devices for use in chronic low back pain.

"More than one in three adults say back pain impacts everyday activities, including sleep¹. Pain feels worse when you feel helpless. This grant will allow us to expand the technology in our VibraCool® Flex, testing new frequencies and thermal modalities in a bigger device specific for the low back. Additionally, we'll research whether having power over pain reduces opioid use," says Amy Baxter, MD, CEO and Chief Medical Officer, Pain Care Labs.

Low-back pain costs Americans at least $50 billion in health care costs each year². Add in lost wages and decreased productivity and that figure easily rises to more than $100 billion.³ According to American College of Physicians (ACP), prescription opioids should be a last resort for those suffering from low back pain, as the risk of addiction and overdose may outweigh the benefits.

Pain Care Labs' VibraCool® is designed to mitigate chronic pain with noninvasive, non-pharmaceutical methods. VibraCool uses motion and ice to harness two newly discovered physiologic pain pathways: one mechanical frequency blocks pain, one competes with pain for the brain's attention. Proven in hospitals for even intense needle pain, this mechanicothermal combination technology is now optimized for a wider range of pain sufferers. The two intense sensations stop pain in its tracks. In addition to the products VibraCool Extended, Easy-fit, and Flex, which are now available, Pain Care Labs expects to deliver the new market-ready device to treat low back pain in Q3 2020.

"VibraCool has proven to be extremely effective in pain reversal and management for knees, neck, feet, elbows, and wrists. We look forward to delivering a new design to specifically help patients with chronic low back pain live more active, healthier lives," says Baxter.

The NIH has awarded almost a billion dollars in grants during the 2019 fiscal year to tackle the national opioid crisis through the agency's NIH HEAL Initiative (Helping to End Addiction Long-term Initiative). The National Institutes of Health launched the HEAL Initiative in April 2018 to improve prevention and treatment strategies for opioid misuse and addiction and enhance pain management.

ABOUT PAIN CARE LABS
Pain Care Labs is the industry leader in noninvasive pain relief devices. Buzzy® has been used to block pain from over 32 million needle procedures. VibraCool® is an FDA cleared device to treat myofascial pain caused by trigger points, restricted motion, and muscle tension. Established in 2006 by emergency physician and pain researcher Amy Baxter MD, the Company is dedicated to effective, reusable, affordable solutions to pain. The Company's award-winning solutions are based on a patented Oscillice™ neuromodulation platform to give serious, simple relief. For more information visit www.paincarelabs.com.

¹ https://www.thegoodbody.com/back-pain-statistics/ 
² In Project Briefs: Back Pain Patient Outcomes Assessment Team (BOAT). In MEDTEP Update, Vol. 1 Issue 1, Agency for Health Care Policy and Research, Rockville, MD.
³ Katz JN. Lumbar disc disorders and low-back pain: socioeconomic factors and consequences [review]. J Bone Joint Surg Am. 2006;88 (suppl 2): 21-24.

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SOURCE Pain Care Labs