For obstetric providers who need to identify patients at risk for postpartum hemorrhage, Maternal aRMOR is a biomedical device that enables diagnosis of early hemorrhage when inexpensive and accessible interventions are most effective.
The Armor Medical Inc. team includes Leo Shmuylovich (MD/PhD ’15), Christine O’Brien, and Kelsey Mayo. Leo Shmuylovich shared more about their venture with us – check out the details below.
Website: https://armormedical.us/
Tell us your startup story – What is the problem you’re solving?
Postpartum hemorrhage, or severe blood loss after delivery, is a leading preventable cause of maternal death, both globally and here in the US. The US is the most dangerous place to give birth among high-income countries, and the current US maternal death rate is at a 60-year high. Hemorrhage occurs in 3% of US annual deliveries, and disturbingly, black women in the US are at least 3x more likely to die from hemorrhage when compared to nonblack women. Importantly, 90% of death and severe complications due to hemorrhage are preventable with early detection and treatment, and thus the stark racial disparities observed are troubling. There is an urgent unmet need for an objective early-warning system for postpartum hemorrhage.
What is your solution to that problem?
Our flagship product, Maternal aRMOR, is a wearable device that enables early diagnosis of postpartum hemorrhage when inexpensive and accessible interventions are most effective. This early diagnosis improves outcomes for patients and reduces treatment costs for payors. Unlike the current standard of care (which includes visual blood loss estimation), Maternal aRMOR provides clinicians with real-time, quantitative information about hemorrhage risk, even if blood loss is internal.
What is the biggest lesson you’ve learned as an entrepreneur?
Seek out expertise early. While it is tempting to think that you can do it yourself, it’s important to acknowledge that there are many others whose experience and skills are beyond your skills and experience, and spending the time recruiting those people is far more effective than trying to figure it out yourself.
What do you love about entrepreneurship?
Science and entrepreneurship have a lot in common. I love the fact that the possibilities at the start seem endless, and creativity is encouraged. I love that there is a potential for making an impact, and in both arenas, your work is something that you love.
What advice would you give to someone considering creating a startup or entering an entrepreneurship competition?
Be open about your ideas and needs. Many people are very closed with their ideas for fear of being scooped. In my opinion, this fear is unfounded – your idea is not so special that just hearing it will inspire someone to drop everything and beat you to the punch. Better to share and find like-minded collaborators than be closed off.
What activities, student groups, professors, or classes had the biggest impact on you during your time at WashU?
Working with my Ph.D. mentor Sándor Kovács had a profound impact on me. As a clinician and physicist, he was able to use his engineering and physics insights to solve problems that were medically relevant to his patients. I hope to continue in his footsteps by bringing my engineering and physics training to bear on medical problems that I and my colleagues face day to day. I was also fortunate to compete and win in the Olin Cup for an online education company which was an outgrowth of my work as a private tutor. Having the support of the medical school to take a leave of absence to pursue that unique opportunity expanded my worldview and helped me appreciate the differences between business and academia. Having gone through that process, I’m excited to be back in the startup space, and blessed to have Kelsey and Christine as partners.
The winner of the Spring 2023 GIA will be announced at The Washington University Innovation and Entrepreneurship Awards Presented by the Skandalaris Center on April 20. All are welcome to attend the awards ceremony to see which team(s) will win non-dilutive funding for their venture.