Stroke of Fortune

Ekos Corp. has developed a new method of breaking up blood clots with ultrasound. Already being used on clots in the legs, the next step is to target clots in the brains of stroke victims.

Stroke is the leading cause of adult disability in the
United States, and for many patients, depending on the type of stroke, there is
less than a 20 percent chance of surviving one. With limited treatment options,
patients are usually forced to wait and hope they can recover with minimal
brain damage.

Ekos Corp., a Bothell-based company that has pioneered the
use of miniaturized ultrasound emitters to help treat blood clots in the arms
and legs, now sees promise for the technology in treating hard-to-reach blood
clots in the brain. Early research indicates that medication paired with
ultrasound can greatly increase a patients chances of recovering from a stroke
and living a normal life.

Ekos ultrasound technology was originally developed to
treat clots in the peripheral areas of the body, especially in the legs. Its
technology, called the EkoSonic Endovascular System, was launched in 2006 and
is in use by vascular surgeons, cardiologists and radiologists across the
country to treat thrombosis. The company holds 25 patents related to the use of
the system to treat clots in the brain and legs.

Traditional clot busting involves feeding a guide wire into
a vein and through the clot. A catheter is then fed over the wire and
medication is released. This method works slowly because the thickness of the
clot prevents the medication from completely permeating it.

With the EkoSonic system, the guide wire is replaced by an
ultrasound emitter. The ultrasound loosens the clot. Almost twice as much
medication then permeates the clot through the second hour of treatment. This
allows a smaller amount of medication to be used, reducing the length of the
procedure and the risk of complications. In studies, the system was shown not
to cause the clot to break free, which can lead to a distal embolism in the
patient.

The intravenous ultrasound emitter was an early success for
Ekos, which has sold more than 16,000 of the disposable units at around $2,500
each. They are used in conjunction with Ekos control unit, which has a price
tag of $20,000. Already, the ultrasound emitters have been sold to more than
325 hospitals in the United States and Europe that have already purchased the
control unit.

Bob Hubert, the president and CEO of Ekos, predicts the
company will be profitable by the first half of 2011. The majority of Ekos
early funding came from private investors, but Hubert says that it is unlikely
the company will seek further investment. We need funding for work beyond the
peripheral vascular stuff, but we dont want to dilute ourselves, Hubert
explains.

Ekos has spent the last year-and-a-half raising its fourth
funding round, totaling $15 million. That plus an $18 million venture capital
raised in 2005 has kept the company going as it seeks new markets for its
technology.

The company is applying for grant money to finance design of
a more specialized ultrasound emitter for use in the brain. It would help treat
the 100,000 people who suffer from bleeding-related strokes each year.

Ekos and Dr. David Newell of the Swedish Neuroscience Institute
recently conducted a nine-person study to test the effectiveness of coupling
ultrasound with medication to treat clots in the brain. The study found that
blood clots in the brain dissolved about four times faster when anticoagulation
drugs were combined with ultrasound therapy than when the drugs were used
alone.

One patient in particular, a 38-year-old police officer,
experienced an almost unheard-of recovery. He underwent treatment with Newell
and was back on the police force within a month.

Mark Hertle, the senior program officer for the Washington
State Life Sciences Discovery Fund, which funded the trial, says that Ekos
technology has the potential to help a large number of people. Were talking
about thousands of people across the United States and hundreds of people in
Washington, he says. There arent many other options and this treatment could
give people the chance to change their prognosis from terminal to fairly good.

A fully developed, cost-effective product
isnt available yet, and Ekos needs grant money to fund the program. The study
with Dr. Newell provided positive results, which could help secure the
necessary funding to push the project into the next stage. The research is
done. We need funding for development and a larger trial, Hubert says. This
is a hugely unmet need.