Abigail Klein Leichman
September 24, 2015, Updated September 21, 2015

The US Navy will start using an Israeli product as part of a comprehensive treatment approach to depression at some of its healthcare centers for service people and their families.

Brainsway’s deep TMS (transcranial magnetic stimulation) helmets  use magnetic pulse energy similar to MRI to stimulate deep structures of the brain and regulate their electrical activity. The helmets are used in several countries for noninvasive, painless treatment of major depressive disorder, addictions and a wide range of other neurological, psychiatric and medical conditions.

“Our validation as a supplier to the US Navy is an important stepping stone for our company into the US market,” said Brainsway CEO Guy Ezekiel in Jerusalem. “We are concentrating our efforts on expanding our strategic presence in the US and increasing sales there.”

Since receiving US Food and Drug Administration approval in 2013 for the treatment of depression in patients who have failed to respond to antidepressant medications, the Brainsway device has been installed in many therapeutic settings in the United States, Australia and Sweden, among other countries.

The system is CE cleared in Europe for treating autism, Alzheimer’s, bipolar disorder, chronic pain, major depressive disorder, Parkinson’s, schizophrenia, smoking cessation, post-traumatic stress disorder, multiple sclerosis, obsessive compulsive disorder and stroke rehabilitation.

The core technology of the Brainsway system was developed by Israeli scientists Avraham Zangen and Yiftach Roth in the late 1990s. The company was established in 2003.

Coincidentally, Brainsway chief operating officer Ronen Segal worked for the Israeli Navy’s development center on a state-of-the-art submarine data communication system from 1998 to 2000.

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