Dolosys

Dolosys GmbH, founded in 2012, was a medical technology company that emerged as a spin-off from the esteemed Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin. The firm's foundation is rooted in research conducted since 2002 by the "Neurophysiology of anaesthesia and analgesia" working group at Charité, which investigated the application of spinal reflexes for pain and analgesia measurement. This extensive research, supported by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Energy, transitioned from a complex laboratory setup into a compact prototype, leading to the establishment of Dolosys GmbH. The company focused on developing and manufacturing devices for the objective measurement and control of pain.

The core of Dolosys's offering was a patented technology for the automatic and continuous measurement of nociceptive reflexes, specifically the RIII-Reflex. This involuntary flexion reflex, triggered by a stimulus, correlates with pain intensity. By measuring this reflex, the technology could provide an objective, patient-independent quantification of pain and the efficacy of analgesics. This was particularly crucial for non-communicative patients, such as those sedated in intensive care units, where subjective pain assessment is impossible.

The primary product was the Paintracker, a portable monitoring device designed to determine the required depth of analgesia for patients. The device's function was to translate the measured pain reflexes into direct treatment recommendations, aiming to optimize individual pain therapy and avoid both underdosing and overdosing of pain medication. The business model targeted the B2B healthcare market, with applications in clinical settings like intensive care units, outpatient pain therapy, and for research purposes in clinical trials of new analgesics. The company aimed to sell its medical device to healthcare organizations to enhance patient pain management. Despite its promising technology and receiving investments from entities like Berliner Sparkasse and Charité, the company ceased operations and was reportedly liquidated in 2019.

Keywords: objective pain measurement, nociceptive reflex, RIII-Reflex, analgesia monitoring, Paintracker, medical device, pain control, neurophysiology, Charité spin-off, sedated patient monitoring, intensive care unit, clinical pain therapy, analgesic effect, patient-independent pain assessment, spinal reflexes, medical technology, dolosimetry, pain quantification, medtech, healthcare technology