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[IT Dong-A x Ulsan City x Design-led Manufacturing Innovation Center] The Korea Design Promotion Agency has established the Ulsan Design-led Manufacturing Innovation Center at Ulsan University. It helps to strengthen the design competitiveness of promising small and medium-sized enterprises and startups. IT Dong-A introduces the companies selected for the Design-led Manufacturing Innovation Support Project and supports their scale-up.

[IT Dong-A Reporter Nam Si-hyun] Cerebral perfusion pressure (CPP) is the pressure of blood that delivers oxygen to brain tissue and is measured as the difference between average arterial pressure (MAP) and intracranial pressure (ICP). CPP measures and calculates MAP and ICP at the same time, and if it is lower than the normal level of 60-80mmHg, it can cause ischemia due to insufficient blood flow in brain tissue. If it is too high, intracranial pressure (ICP) rises, leading to brain stem and cranial nerve compression due to brain hernia.

Brain perfusion pressure maintains a normal state if there is no problem with blood vessels, and if it is known, it can predict brain ischemia, cerebral edema, and cerebral hemorrhage. Brain perfusion pressure is also used to diagnose and treat stroke, or to manage external patients. Therefore, if the brain perfusion pressure can be checked in everyday life, stroke, etc., can be managed routinely like diabetes.

However, measurement of cerebral perfusion pressure is so difficult that it is necessary to measure pressure directly by examining cerebrospinal fluid or inserting a catheter into a blood vessel of the brain. In addition, indirect measurement methods are not ordinary methods such as positron emission tomography, brain monophotonous tomography, and functional magnetic resonance imaging. Using cerebral blood flow ultrasound (TCD) is the cheapest and simplest method, but this also requires medical staff to measure it directly.

Huwons Suggests Daily Measurement and Management of Cerebral Blood Pressure Ratio
CEO Kim Kyung-dae founded Huwons in 2020 and proposes a daily management plan of cerebrovascular vessels using his own unit called C.P.R.I. If cerebral perfusion pressure is intracerebral pressure, the CPRI that Huwons refers to is a ratio of the difference between the decrease in blood flow or blood pressure on the other side when pressure is high or concentrated in a specific blood vessel.

The CPRI is measured using the "Body Mac," a pressure ratio measurement device for cerebral blood flow developed by Huwons. The body Mac measures the blood pressure difference between the forebrain artery and the hindbrain artery by placing an optical blood volume measurement (PPG) sensor at the neck and determines the imbalance of cerebral blood flow based on the measurement. Currently, the reliability of measurement is 99 percent in the normal category and up to 70 percent of accuracy is achieved depending on the thickness of the neck and obesity. The body Mac is currently undergoing registration review for a second-class medical device, and Japan is also planning to apply for a second-class medical device PMDA.

In addition, KIDP Ulsan Design-led Manufacturing Innovation Center has also advanced Huwons' medical device design to strengthen the product usability of body Mac devices. The existing design was difficult for doctors to control the main body by holding two pruves, but KIDP Ulsan Design-led also advanced the product by attaching a clutch to the main body of the product and adjusting it with both feet through collaboration with "Advanced Design" arranged by the Manufacturing Innovation Center. In addition, it is also planning a product that measures the CPRI index in real time by attaching a patch to the wrist in the form of a watch.

The CPRI value measured through the photometric sensor is calculated through the calculation of the body mac software, and based on this, the health status can be assessed. For example, the CPRI index is 0-33, and if it exceeds 50, it suffers from stress or migraines. Values between 50 and 67 may affect body temperature control or circulatory system, and at higher levels, there may be nutritional imbalance or motor dysfunction. This value was measured by CEO Kim Kyung-dae based on the CPRI value rather than medical findings.

Although the physical findings according to the CPRI value have not been clinically proven, it is true that brain perfusion pressure and physical conditions are closely related. For example, when there is brain ischemia or increased intracranial pressure, hypothermia treatment reduces brain damage. Hypothermia prevents the brain's hyperperfusion or hypoperfusion, brain swelling, and streamlines and protects the brain's blood flow. Based on these results, it can be seen as an opinion that if there is an abnormality in the CPRI value, it can affect body temperature control.

Standardization work in connection with universities to expand interest, interest, and medical evidence in domestic and international markets
Meanwhile, Huwons' CPRI and body vein-related technologies combine oriental medicine and Western medicine to present new diagnostic criteria, not medical advice or treatments. Still, medical supervision by Park Kyu-hyun, emeritus professor of neurology at Pusan National University, as well as certification of second-class medical devices by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety are underway. "We are developing measurement equipment using ultrasonic waves to enhance and standardize CPRI expertise, and we can acquire image information and bio-signal measurement information at the same time so that medical staff can actively use it for diagnosis," said Kim Kyung-dae, CEO of Seoul National University. In addition, the coding of the CPRI index will enable it to be expanded to an artificial intelligence-based personal remote diagnosis system.

Japan and China are also paying attention to Huwons' market potential, and they signed a technology exchange and science and technology joint development agreement with Nanjing Medical University in China in July 2023, a memorandum of understanding was signed by the Jangchun International Cooperation Demonstration Zone Management Committee in June 24, and a visit to Tokyo and Kobe Bedding Center in Japan and a product demonstration. They also participated in the "International Medicines and Health Industry Expo" held in Jangchun, China between the 7th and the 9th. Next year, they will participate in the Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2025) and move into the Osong Advanced Medical Complex in Cheongju.

Beyond medical and clinical findings, the idea of making cerebrovascular diseases that are difficult to predict and manage due to cerebrovascular pressure ratios into the realm of life management is also noteworthy in the medical community, and if the feasibility increases, a clue can be found to manage cerebral hemorrhage and stroke, which are difficult to predict. We hope that Hughes' technology related to the cerebral artery pressure ratio index will show remarkable growth.

IT Dong-A, Nam Si-hyun (sh@itdonga.com )