The Insides Company

The Insides Company, founded in 2017 as a spin-out from the University of Auckland, is a medical device firm addressing the critical needs of patients with severe intestinal failure. The foundational concept for the company's technology originated from Co-Founder and Chief Medical Officer Professor Ian Bissett's surgical experience in Nepal in the 1980s, where he identified a significant unmet need for nutrition in patients suffering from intestinal failure. This experience, accumulated over 30 years, forms the clinical bedrock of the company's mission. The firm is led by CEO Garth Sutherland, a veteran with over two decades in Medtech CEO roles and experience in commercializing high-technology innovations. His background includes founding and leading the digital therapeutics company Adherium through to its IPO.

The company's core business revolves around the design and manufacturing of therapeutic chyme reinfusion solutions for patients with conditions like high-output enterostomies or enteroatmospheric fistulas, often resulting from colorectal cancer, Crohn's disease, or abdominal trauma. Its clients are hospitals and specialized intestinal failure centers of excellence globally. The business model involves selling its flagship product, The Insides System, which includes both initial kits and monthly refill consumables, directly and through a growing network of distributors in Europe, the UK, and Asia. The Insides Company has successfully raised $10.2M in funding through various rounds, including seed, Series A, and equity crowdfunding, with backing from investors like Cure Kids Ventures and Icehouse Ventures.

The Insides® System is an automated chyme reinfusion device that restores gut continuity. It consists of a small, magnetically coupled pump that sits inside a patient's ostomy bag, a tube inserted into the distal intestine, and an external, battery-powered driver that controls the pump. This system collects chyme—the nutrient-rich fluid from the stomach—that would otherwise be disposed of and reinfuses it back into the lower part of the patient's intestine. The key benefit is enabling patients to resume oral nutrition, which reduces the reliance on costly and complication-prone parenteral nutrition. This process helps restore liver and kidney function, prevents intestinal atrophy, and can significantly shorten hospital stays, improving the patient's quality of life. The system received CE mark approval for sale in Europe in early 2020 and was granted a Breakthrough Device Designation by the U.S. FDA in 2019. A pivotal clinical trial, REINFUSE, is underway in the US and UK to support future FDA market approval.

Keywords: chyme reinfusion, intestinal failure, therapeutic medical devices, gut health, enterostomy, fistula management, colorectal surgery recovery, parenteral nutrition alternative, MedTech, The Insides System, Garth Sutherland, Ian Bissett, Auckland UniServices, surgical devices, digestive health, clinical nutrition, stoma care, gastrointestinal devices, FDA Breakthrough Device, CE Mark, ISO 13485