The general public, the industry, and themedical community all predicted that the importance of the health industry inthe post-COVID era will increase. The Korea Health Industry DevelopmentInstitute (KHIDI) conducted a survey on public awareness of the health industryfor about a month from September 23 to October 30 last year, and 85% of thepeople agreed on the importance of the health industry.

In preparation for the post-COVID era,KHIDI has started supporting six promising health industry startups in Korea,and the company is preparing to enter the global market as a Korean company aswell as in Korea. △Eco&Rich △MedKit △Home Doctor △IF △Cure-in △GEN FIT

Eco&Rich developed implant ceramic crown upper prosthesis by utilizing 3D printing and casting technology

Eco&Rich (CEO Jeon Jin-hoon) hasdeveloped an implant ceramic crown upper prosthesis. The company staff said,“The dental laboratory Eco&Rich has proven research and technologicalprowess to publish a paper in the world's top journals, in Journal ofProsthetic Dentistry and Journal of Prosthodontic Research. Our implant ceramiccrown upper prosthesis (substructure + superstructure) guarantees outstandingprecision, biocompatibility, and safety."

He then said, “We solved the problem ofcracking or breaking of the existing implant ceramic crown upper prosthesis byusing 3D printing and casting technology. Since there is no need to make itagain, it is time and cost efficient, and provides efficiency to the customers.We are manufacturing dental prostheses customized to the internationalstandards at reasonable prices."

MedKit develops digital therapeutics aimed at “gamification of medical treatment”

MedKit is developing digital therapeuticsthat aim to gamify treatment by using augmented reality technology. The companystaff said, “MedKit is a company that develops digital therapeutics. Digitaltherapeutics helps to manage lifelong diseases such as autism, diabetes, anddepression that last a lifetime and have no obvious treatment options. MedKitaims for the gamification of treatment. We make it easy to participate bymaking the treatment rules as games. This has already been developed by many companies,and it is being advanced. MedKit provides generalization and continuation oftreatment so that hospital treatment rules can be followed in daily life."

He then said, “MedKit presents a solutionthat preserves the advantages of advanced digital therapeutics and improves thedisadvantages. We will develop behavior therapy and social improvement gamesfor high-skilled children. The most important thing is generalization,verification, and sustainability. For generalization, we will use augmented realitytechnology to improve the effect, and we will get approval from MFDS by moredefinite medical verification by using IoT, wearable devices, and MRI.

Home Doctor develops visiting medical platform for the elderly living in the community

Home Doctor is developing a visitingmedical platform that enables continuous on-site medical care by improving theaccessibility of patients and organizing an efficient visit process for medicalpersonnel. The company staff said, “By continuously collecting data of actualpatients, we would like to become the foundation for personalized medical care.We plan to provide evidence-based medical services by collecting various datasuch as economy, housing, and environment as well as patient medical datathrough actual visiting medical services.”

“We will present an easy and fast system by establishing a visiting medical platform that can connect the visiting medical system built by regions. We will support various activities such as continuous patient monitoring, patient food delivery, wearable device and digital therapeutic development using the visiting medical platform.”

IF to develop electronic devices for the public health with anger control reaction bracelet, nail biting correction ring, and eco-friendly energy insole

IF (CEO Choi Hyun-bae) would like tocontribute to the public's mental health through electronic devices, and it isdeveloping unique products with the slogan “Incorporating psychology intoengineering.” Currently, IF is developing the anger control reaction braceletthat detects and informs anger in advance, nail biting correction ring that cancorrect nail biting habit, and eco-friendly energy insole that automaticallyrecharges the battery while walking.

The nail-biting correction ring can correctunconscious behavior by detecting carbon dioxide (CO2) when exhaling andstarting buzzer whenever nail biting occurs, which is when the finger is nearthe mouth and lasts for more than one second. The company staff said, “Althoughwe are a small company, we would like to make high-quality product that canraise the pride of Korea and contribute to the health of the people, and wewill try to embrace those in need."

Cure-in develops MRI image-guided automated breast biopsy robot system

Cure-in is developing an MRI image-guidedautomated breast biopsy robot system that can reduce MRI breast biopsy timefrom 45 minutes to 1.5 hours to 25-40 minutes. A company staff from Cure-insaid, “By developing the medical robot that help the doctors to diagnoses andtreats cancer quickly and accurately, we want pave the way to become the globalcompany that can give the medical staff confidence and trust, and patientscomfort. Currently, we are under the final commercialization of the MRIimage-guided automated breast biopsy robot system which we developed in theNational Cancer Center as a research project in the global market.”

He then said, “Our robotic system can beused without modifying the existing MRI equipment or breast coal, so thehospitals can keep using the equipment they have and perform the automatedbreast biopsy. It has a curved biopsy needle that passes through a narrow spacein the gantry. It is equipped with an adapter device that can connect theexisting breast coil without disassembling/modifying it." He added, “Ifthere is a bold and long-term investment of research fund and interest, I thinkKorea can lead the field of international MRI-guided interventions.”

GEN FIT develops Jet Fit, a muscle function correction device for wrinkle reducing, teeth whitening, and sleep apnea improvement

GEN FIT (CEO Son Jin-hee) developed GENFIT, a muscle function correction device that can reduce wrinkles, whitenteeth, and improve sleep quality. The company staff said, “GEN FIT is anergonomically designed device that can reduce wrinkles, whiten teeth, and improve sleep apnea without sideeffects from surgeries. Also, we are preparing to launch oral products that canbe used with the device such as tooth whitening agents.”

He then said, “In the past, surgery was theway to remove the nasolabial wrinkles. But by wearing the patented GEN FIT,people can reduce their nasolabial wrinkles just by wearing them. It can beworn comfortably without the burden of side effects of the procedure.” Aboutthe future business plans, he said, “We would like to launch products thatoffer a variety of choices by establishing a lineup for each usage. Also, wewould like to promote our product’s effectiveness by participating in dentalfairs, exhibitions, and conferences, and at the time, we are going to promotethe product in online and offline channels, to make our product brand known andbuilt the image.”

KHIDI is a public institution thatprofessionally and systematically conducts support projects to strengtheninternational competitiveness in the health industry and improve public health.In addition to expanding investment in health care technology R&D, we havebeen leading the strengthening of domestic and overseas competitiveness of thehealth industry, such as medical services, pharmaceuticals, medical devices,beauty cosmetics, age-friendly, foreign patients attraction, and overseasexpansion of medical systems. Also, we are steadily fostering health care starcompanies by supporting global technology commercialization for SMEsspecializing in the health industry such as pharmaceuticals, bios, and medicaldevices.