If you have ever been to an ENT clinic, a facility that specializes in ear-nose-throat infections, then you must be aware that first of all there is a long list of waiting that you need to face at those clinics, and that is when you are lucky enough to get an appointment in the first place. On the other hand, when you do get an appointment then there are number of hurdles you need to clear before you are finally diagnosed for the problem you are having. Talking about hearing diagnostics, it is worth noting that the experts rely on how the patients hear the things and how they respond to sounds on different frequencies but the setup is only available at their clinics.
However, TympaHealh from UK is now taking an initiative to get hearing diagnostics done right at your home so you don’t need to feel awkward as well as face any difficult in taking a diagnostics whatsoever. TympaHealth has developed a handheld hardware and software to complement it that works on both iOS and Android devices. You can take hearing tests on those devices and get results right on your smartphone. To create awareness and build more such hardware devices, TympaHealth has just raised $23M.
It is worth noting that TympaHealth started its journey from an NHS incubator which is a startup incubator set up by UK’s public health organization but it is also interesting to report that majority of TympaHealth’s patients have come from private visits. TympaHealth says that it is working with the NHS trusts where they will provide the tests at subsidized rates.
Octopus Ventures, who funded TympaHealth on its latest round, said in a statement that “Using a high-quality product and a proposition geared around the consumer, they are reducing the burden of ear and hearing care in an overstretched NHS, while vastly improving patient experience and outcomes,”. You must be excited to know that TympaHealth has already received FDA-approval for its device and they have started running trial before wider business push. It is likely that prices in the US will be higher than that in the UK.
