A Next-Gen Alternative to Animal-Derived Dental Medical Devices

Pitch
1

Problem statement:

Some of you may have visited dentists for tooth replacement or gum recession issues leading to tooth loss which requires surgical intervention. The treatment involves the use of guided tissue regeneration (GTR) membranes, which can be resorbable/dissolvable (collagen) or non-resorbable (Teflon). Teflon membranes are cheap but require a second surgery for removal and have a high failure rate. Doctors prefer resorbable collagen membranes, which dissolve naturally, avoiding extra procedures. However, these come from porcine (Pig) or bovine heart or thigh muscles. For this, the animals are slaughtered in a particular environment as it will be used for human use. These are easily available at an affordable cost, but most of them are of very low quality and supplied by China globally.

We have conducted a survey in India and Ireland which revealed that most doctors do not disclose the membrane’s origin to patients. While synthetic resorbable membranes exist, they are costly globally due to high production costs. In India, the import cost is further added to the cost. So, this is a serious problem because patients are unaware of what material is going into their mouths. However, there is another side of the coin that alternative affordable materials are not readily available to doctors, so it is a catch-22 situation.

Now, those reading this pitch who have already undergone such surgery may feel awkward ( :thinking: pig or bovine!!!), while those considering a visit to a dentist are now aware of what to ask about the material :grinning:.

The manufacturing of resorbable synthetic membranes requires complex technology, which makes them expensive.

Market size:

  • Globally the market size is 2.8- 4.5 billion dollars right now (as per different reports)
  • We couldn’t find data for the Indian market, but we know only 4.5% of the population seek dental care, but 90% of the Indian population has gum disease and tooth loss problems.
  • 85-95% dependence on imports to meet annual requirements of India. This seems to be one of the reasons for the low footfall in dental clinics.
  • To the best of our knowledge, not one company in India manufactures these membranes, majorly due to the lack of relevant IPs.
  • Globally, only 3-5 companies make these membranes.
  • Average cost of treatment is 20-40 K rupees/implant in India and 2-3K USD/implant in USA and Europe. The material cost generally constitutes 40-60% of the total cost.
  • In India, the cost of collagen membranes ranges from Rupees 600- 10K/cm.sq and resorbable membranes cost > 25K/cm.sq.

So, there is an untapped market with immense opportunity in India as well as globally for dental membranes.

Solution:

We have identified a technology gap in the manufacturing of resorbable synthetic membranes and working to solve it. We have already developed a design prototype of the membrane. We chalked out a unique method wherein it takes a one-step facile method to prepare the membrane which has properties similar to expensive ones, but super affordable (could sell for 5-8X lower prices/cm2). Also, we will be adding game-changing functionalities (incorporating as per the feedback of doctors) in the membranes which could drastically reduce the cost of post-procedural medication.

We hope to partner with Rainmatter to develop deep tech in biomedical devices and establish the first company in India dedicated to this problem. Additionally, this membrane has other applications, including the treatment of congenital craniomaxillofacial defects and hernias. Together, we can protect animal lives while creating affordable products that could improve patients’ acceptability and accessibility of dental membranes.

Product development stage: TRL4

We cannot share prototype data/images due to IP-related restrictions on the public platforms. If requested, we can share via email.

1 Like
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Ya, this is a serious problem involving both ethical, and cultural aspects of the people. Doctors do not have any rights to play with peoples emotions or religious sentiments while using implantable medical materials. In my view patients must have all rights to know the components used and their source etc. For a country like India cost of any medicine, device, implant is very important. As mentioned in the article most of the Indians with teeth and gums problem never visit a dentist because of the prohibitive cost of the imported materials. In this aspect acceptable and cost effective dental materials are the need of the hour, hence such sunrise technologies must be recognised and funded.

3

Thank you Dr Shyam for expressing your opinion. You have rightly pointed out that patients have the right to know about the origin of the material. In our survey, no doctor disclosed the origin of the dental grafts, and some were hesitant to give a response. This is unfortunate. As I mentioned in the article, even doctors are helpless. They do not have any alternative good material to offer, so they end up using something which may not be acceptable to the patients. I hope we will get support from the investors so that we can further develop and commercialise the proposed product.

4

if it is affordable , will work like a charm in india.
Most of the quality dental implants are costly making people to live with it rather than going to a dentist.

Seems a huge breakthrough if it can be manufactured synthetically sparing lives of pigs and bovines.

5

Even doctors gave the same feedback. They are just waiting for a synthetic degradable product which is affordable. India is a cost-sensitive market. Bringing affordable dental care implants along with reducing postprocedural medication can significantly reduce the cost-treatment.

6

This is very good initiative and it has ethical, economical and culturalal advantage. But in india patient is not customer because Doctor decides according to benefit… A awareness is needed among patients…
Thanks and congratulations for a very good contribution to the society :+1::+1::+1::+1::bouquet::bouquet::bouquet::kissing_heart::bouquet::kissing_heart: