India’s first non-contact nerve monitor to reduce nerve damage in facial surgeries

In an exciting medical breakthrough, Dr. MCV Anand from MCV Memorial ENT Hospital in Pollachi, along with Harisharan and Thilak from Caldor Health Technologies in Coimbatore, has developed India’s first Non-Contact Nerve Monitor. This innovative device, used in face and neck surgeries, helps surgeons locate critical nerves without direct contact, making surgeries safer and more effective.
Dr. Arya Sree Nair, a researcher at MCV Memorial ENT Hospital, compared this new Indian device with expensive foreign-made models like the NIM monitor by Medtronic. The study found that the Indian monitor performs with the same accuracy. This achievement earned Dr. Arya the prestigious RAF Cooper Award, a global honour for outstanding medical research.
Speaking about the non-contact nerve monitor, Thilak Chakaravarthi, one of the co-founders, said, “We’ve been working on this technology for the past five months. Previously, during complex head and facial surgeries, doctors faced significant challenges in avoiding nerve damage, which could lead to partial facial paralysis or disfigurement. In cases of recurrent surgeries, where doctors had to operate more than once in the same area, the risk of nerve damage increased to 10%. The nerve monitor is designed to prevent this.”
“The medical community used to import this device from the US at a cost of Rs. 40 lakhs, making it unaffordable for many hospitals. Additionally, the device required 8 to 10 needles to be inserted in the face and other areas of the body to locate the facial nerve. Our non-contact nerve monitor eliminates the need for needle insertions by using a highly sensitive motion detection camera to help surgeons locate nerves. This technology reduces the cost of the device to under Rs. 5 lakhs. Our goal is to ensure all hospitals in India can afford the device and prevent nerve damage during surgeries,” he added.
The non-contact design of this new device makes it safer and easier to use, reducing risks for patients. Unlike older nerve monitors that require costly sensors and electrodes for each surgery, this device uses a video-based system to detect nerves. It remains just as accurate and reliable while being much more affordable.
"We are proud to offer a solution that makes surgeries safer and advanced technology more accessible to everyone in India," said Dr. MCV Anand.
This invention marks a major step in improving healthcare in India.