The KneeKG's leads are strapped onto the patient, who then walks or runs on a treadmill.

Emovi inc.

The "bad knee" is the scourge of athletes of all ages, and an increasing problem as the population ages. Enter Emovi of Laval, Quebec. Their KneeKG system allows clinicians to evaluate the functional condition of the knee using 3D imaging of the knee in motion, offering physicians and specialists a new form of information to help guide decisions as to what care regimens to offer patients.

The KneeKG (or Examen GCG, in French) is not just a pun on the EKG; it is a means for clinicians to evaluate the knee's health and to make informed decisions about care regimes following ligament injuries, for example. The KneeKG will also help follow-up monitoring of arthrosis, for instance, or of other problems in the ligaments or meniscus. It's also possible to predict what effects treatments such as viscosupplementation, physiotherapy, and surgery will have on the knee's function and the patient's mobility. The device hooks directly to the knee and records the complex motion between the femur and the tibia along the sagittal, frontal, and transverse planes—an important clinical and technological breakthrough. The signals are then processed using advances in mathematical and computational sciences, notably neural networks and fuzzy logic, to visualize and depict the state of the knee.

The KneeKG spun off from the work of medical researchers at the 30-member LIO (Laboratoire de recherche en imagerie et orthopédie) in 1995. Emovi has benefited from over a decade of research and clinical trials at that prestigious laboratory led by Professor Jacques de Guise. Professor Nicola Hagemeister; Doctors Pierre Ranger, Patrick Lavigne, David Baillargeon, Guy Grimard, and Nathaly Gaudrault; Alexandre Fuentes; and David Labbé are now among those working on other applications for this device and its technological platform.

A processing unit interprets this motion and presents clinicians with a clear picture of the knee's health.

The LIO is a unit within the École de technologie supérieure (ÉTS), part of the Université du Québec system. LIO is also affiliated with the Centre hospitalier de l'Université de Montréal (CHUM), a network of three teaching/research hospitals. However, the collaboration went much farther than LIO's doors.

Involved in the design were physiotherapists, kinesiologists, orthopaedic surgeons, mathematicians, computer scientists, and engineers from across the Montreal region. Also instrumental were the Centre de médecine sportive de Laval (Laval centre for sports medicine) and the Carrefour Multisports, a local athletic complex where sports enthusiasts have already benefited from 3D evaluations of their knees.

Initial funding allowed Emovi to receive, among others, help from the Quebec government's Vitrine technologique ("technological showcase") program, as well as a loan from Canada Economic Development.

While Laflamme raves about the "fantastic" research team, there were and continue to be some difficulties in finding qualified people, an increasingly common problem for advanced multidisciplinary projects. They were able to overcome this problem through internships and by drawing on the expertise of specialists from outside the Montreal area.

Other challenges to developing the device have included technology-transfer and regulatory issues, and obstacles to integrating the device into the clinical setting. The company now faces these challenges in the US, Europe, and Toronto, where collaborations for the commercialization of the device are being negotiated.

Laflamme cites excellent support from the ÉTS's Centre d'expérimentation et de transfert technologique (CETT; technology transfer centre), particularly from director Jean Bélanger, who helped acquire the rights to the technology. Univalor, Valchum, and Valéo also supported this process. Nathalie Plante, of Laval's CDL (Local Development Office), was a significant help with their market penetration strategy.

Further Reading

For more on Emovi, please visit
http://www.centredugenou.com/,
or contact Michelle Laflamme at:
mlaflamme@emovi.ca
(514) 885-4003

ÉTS (French only):
www.etsmtl.ca/zone2/enbref/

CETT (French only):
www.etsmtl.ca/zone2/recherche/cett/

LIO (French with some English):
www.lio.etsmtl.ca

CHUM (French only):
www.chumtl.qc.ca/accueil.fr.html

Centre de médecine sportive de Laval:
www.cmslaval.com/