“Why Autoimmune Diseases Rise Sharply After 50”
As an alternative to current treatments, a new implantable device made by SetPoint Medical was recently approved by the Food and Drug Administration for people with moderate to severe rheumatoid arthritis who haven’t responded to, or were intolerant of, other treatments.
The device is based on findings by SetPoint co-founder Dr. Kevin Tracey, who heads the Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research at Northwell Health in New York. He discovered that the vagus nerve—which connects the brain to many organs—can send electrical signals that suppress the inflammatory response. In clinical trials, patients with rheumatoid arthritis who received mild electrical pulses to the vagus nerve from the implant had fewer flare-ups and lower disease activity. Northwell is making the device available to qualifying patients.”