A Maine infant health company working with Tufts Medical Center has received a $2.5 million contract to treat drug-affected babies.
The National Institute on Drug Abuse awarded Tufts and Biddeford-based Prapela a contract to develop the SVS Hospital Bassinet.
The bassinet helps treat newborns diagnosed with Neonatal Abstinence Syndrome/Neonatal Opioid Withdrawal Syndrome, as part of the Helping to End Addiction Long-term Initiative.
The bassinet is padded with a stochastic vibrotactile stimulation device that Prapela has developed to treat babies who were exposed to opioids at birth. A published study showed the device improved babies’ breathing and heart rates and helped relax them when undergoing morphine treatment for opioid exposure.
The funding will be used to launch a randomized clinical trial that would measure the bassinet’s efficacy in treating babies with the syndrome, Prapela co-founder and chief executive John Konsin said.