VibeTech Enterprises LLC

Early NASA Work Leads to Discovery
Bone Loss Reduction Technology Found to Have Generalized Human Value

Over the last 10 years, Dr. Jeff Leismer, PhD, has pioneered therapeutic vibration science and technology, starting with a grant from the National Institute on Aging. It was initially conceived as a means to reduce bone disuse atrophy in astronauts during long duration spaceflight (NASA Spinoff, 2015). After discovering that his technology could be used to involuntarily contract/exercise muscles and help restore tissues, he founded VibeTech to make the technology available to all people globally who suffer from impaired mobility (e.g., older adults, people with physical disabilities, people recovering from injury or surgery, etc.). The technology is based on the principle that vibration forces that act naturally on the body--through the feet and legs as people walk--could be replicated mechanically to stimulate tissues into being worked as they would be during normal physical exercise. Dr. Leismer is considered an expert in his field, and has recently been invited by ISO to form a committee to study and propose international standards for the safe use of applied therapeutic vibration on humans.

Technology That Can Benefit Everyone

But How to Narrow the Focus?

After learning that dysmobility syndrome—a term coined by gerontologists to characterize the physical deterioration that occurs in all humans as a result of lack of exercise—can be counteracted by therapeutic vibrations applied to the body in a scientific manner, it became apparent that many conditions could be successfully treated. People living with muscle atrophy resulting from diabetes, Parkinson’s, arthritis, stroke, osteoporosis, injuries, and surgeries are all candidates for application of therapeutic vibration. Chronic and acute pain can also be reduced or eliminated. Our advanced rehab system is based on Smart Dosing™, an AI feature we developed to ensure safe and effective levels of treatment—automatically. Other therapeutic alternatives cannot offer the capabilities of automatic safe and effective customized dosing. We are unique and different. But with limited resources, VibeTech needed to narrow its focus—otherwise no one would be helped.

First Selected Target – Those with Greatest Need

High Societal and Personal Costs

After soul-searching with team members and an outside health industry consulting firm, we at VibeTech decided to focus our initial commercialization efforts on the segment we deemed the most needy—older adults with a history of falling. The financial impact of older adult falls is huge and growing, reaching nearly $68 Billion/year in direct treatment costs in 2020. Traditional Medicare and Medicaid pays $33Billion, Medicare Advantage insurance plans $17Billion, Hospital systems $7B, Other $11B. In addition, indirect costs primarily impacting the skilled nursing and assisted living industry include increased regulatory paperwork, increased nursing and personal care time, poor consumer ratings, lawsuits, higher insurance premiums, caregiver burden and deteriorating patient attitudes. We all know someone who has fallen, broken a hip, and never recovered to their former mobility level. It is well documented that such a sequence of events normally leads to a significantly lower quality of life and shortened lifespan. Rocky Knoll Health Center in Sheboygan County WI, a nursing home with an innovation orientation, worked with VibeTech on a pilot study to apply therapeutic vibration to residents with memory issues (who coincidentally have the highest fall rate among older adults). After a highly successful 45% fall reduction rate observed during the study, the Frank G. and Frieda K. Brotz Family Foundation saw the results and agreed to fund a project—currently in progress—to expand and enhance the use of applied therapeutic vibration for memory care residents at Rocky Knoll.   

Winner of the 2020 McKnight's Excellence in Technology Gold Award for Innovator of the Year, Skilled Nursing Track

On October 6th, the long-term care industry’s most trusted media outlet, McKnight’s, awarded our skilled nursing innovation collaborator, Rocky Knoll, the coveted 2020 Excellence in Technology Gold Award for Innovator of the Year, Skilled Nursing track (https://www.mcknights.com/news/102898/), for the ground-breaking work in reducing resident falls, featuring VibeTech's cutting-edge equipment.

Positive Societal Impact Will Drive Financial Success

Purpose Alongside Profits

We at VibeTech firmly believe that the positive societal impact from widespread adoption of therapeutic technology will also drive significant VibeTech financial success. We believe there can be “purpose alongside profits”. In addition to the economic benefits that our customers will see, it is now apparent that the COVID-19 impact on isolation and loneliness among adults in care facilities can be offset to a degree by the use of our therapeutic vibration device. During infection control lockdowns, such as those now occurring in our country and around the world, normal physical exercise routines are often severely disrupted or curtailed. Residents must often remain in their rooms, with no or significantly reduced opportunities for human interaction, which experts have quickly identified as leading to severe feelings of isolation, worthlessness, and loneliness, as well as to physical deterioration from muscle atrophy. Availability of the VibeTech portable exercise device will allow staff to bring physical therapy to the resident—quickly, simply, privately, and on an as-needed basis. Our device will be easily cleanable and portable, plus therapeutic vibration has been shown to produce ‘calming’ and ‘relaxing’ physical responses among users, which is a significant benefit to clinical staff interacting with residents with anxiety issues.

Our 11 person team varies in age from the 30’s to the 70’s and all team members are on deferred compensation arrangements—a strong indication of our belief in our ultimate financial success. Our technology is covered by 10 patents in the US and abroad with 3 additional patents pending, and use of our devices in care facilities is being reimbursed by Medicare, Medicaid, and health insurance. We are seeking to raise funds through Wefunder to complete development and commercialization of our new product version—which is smaller, portable, lighter, easier to operate so that caregivers and family members can also administer treatments, and significantly lower priced than earlier versions which were more suitable for research—and to ramp up marketing, sales, and customer service capabilities. Financial returns to institutional purchasers of our devices will be substantial, with payback periods measured in months. We have no direct competition with this new technology and our product pricing will be based on value provided. Our product will be Made in USA.


Reasons to invest in VibeTech

Down the Road – Home Use Devices and Other Consumer Segments

Aging at Home / Personalized Rehab

We’ve come a long way--from a slow, steady addition of team members who share our values, to receipt of the Wisconsin Innovation Award in 2017, to 18 Clinical Studies, to a focus on the most needy population among us, to over 20,000 treatments provided to nursing home physical therapy patients with no serious adverse events.

While our new product is aimed at institutional purchasers, VibeTech is already contemplating a home-use version which we expect to make available directly to consumers. Several significant national trends make this a sound strategy: the desire to age at home, bio-monitoring for early health warnings, and increasing consumer expectations for better software to promote user engagement and personalization.  In addition, we see future markets among those consumers interested in simply maintaining their physical capabilities (e.g., the weekend warrior) and those seeking to improve or excel (e.g. elite athletes).

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