Beauty Tech News: Oral Care and Wearables

MC10, Inc., a healthcare tech company specializing in stretchable body-worn computing systems, and PCH, which designs custom product solutions, have entered into an exclusive partnership to commercialize MC10’s Wearable Interactive Stamp Platform (WiSP). The smart stamp was first commercialized in conjunction with L’Oréal as the world’s first stretchable electronic designed to measure individual UV exposure.
 
But don’t get too excited beauty brands; L’Oréal will retain exclusivity for applications of this technology in the beauty domain, according to PCH.

The partnership between MC10 and PCH will allow brands to develop a variety of consumer applications for the platform, which is a skin-worn, ultra-thin, stretchable and disposable stamp. PCH will work with third-party brands to customize the technology and develop new consumer applications. When paired with a smartphone, tablet, or near field communication reader, the WiSP platform enables a variety of consumer applications— think cashless payments, hotel room access or event registration. It can also be used in clinical environments to transmit important patient information and streamline procedure flow.
 
In other tech news,  Cambridge, MA-based Forsyth Institute is set to release PhotOral, billed as a novel oral hygiene device that uses smart light technology and blue LEDs to combat pathogenic bacteria in the mouth.
 
“Unlike brushing, flossing or using an oral antiseptic, which can kill the good bacteria along with the bad, the PhotOral device only kills harmful bacteria,” says Stamatis Astra, PhotOral CEO. “When the blue light hits the teeth, they act as mirrors to reflect the light into the dental pocket between the gums, areas that are otherwise inaccessible through brushing and flossing alone. The PhotOral provides a crucial new tool in the wellness arsenal, leading to improved oral health, and ultimately better overall health.”
 
The concept for PhotOral originated in 2005, when Forsyth scientists were conducting research into teeth whitening techniques for a major oral care brand. The team found that 455-nanometer wavelength blue light reduced inflammation and improved the overall periodontal (gum) health of their patients. Not only did the blue light kill “black-pigmented” bacteria (BPB), one of the most destructive oral bacteria, but it also left the good bacteria completely unharmed.
In 2011, Forsyth licensed the technology to the start-up PhotOral, Inc.. Following clinical trials, the company developed a personal oral care device which targets these pathogenic bacteria that contribute to gum disease.
 
The hand-held device, which resembles a mouth guard, can currently be pre-ordered from www.photoral.com for $229. The device is inserted into the mouth twice a day for 60 seconds and when used in combination with brushing and flossing, adds another technology to improve oral health.