Wilmington-based tech startup company SportGait Inc. has announced a new strategic partnership and an equity investment by Multi-Health Systems Inc. (MHS) to provide medical decision support software for concussion and brain wellness, according to a news release.
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The two companies have also agreed to continuing research to use other MHS products for “improving youth sport and workplace safety,” officials said in the release. As part of its agreement, officials said MHS President and COO Hazel Wheldon has joined SportGait's board of directors.

SportGait provides mobile and medical applications using validated assessments in an integrated, easy-to-use Platform-as-a-Service for medical providers, officials said in the release. 

The company is located at the University of North Carolina Wilmington’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE). Most recently, the company was featured in the Startup Showcase at N.C. Tech’s State of Technology conference May 4.

SportGait provides integrated decision support tools for parents, coaches and medical professionals, officials said. SportGait's mobile apps, on Android and iOS, uses Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidance to support on-field and workplace concussion symptom assessment and directs patients to appropriate medical professionals for further assessment and treatment.

“We are very excited to have MHS and Hazel join our team,” SportGait President and CEO Chris Newton said in the release. “MHS is a leading publisher of scientifically-validated assessments, especially in the youth performance arena. Their extensive database of real-world results is just what we needed to help us achieve our vision whereby concussions are treated like any other injury, by a doctor, not on the playing field.”

Wheldon said that SportGait has integrated its tests with other assessments to make them available to a new market for MHS.

"They are bringing our decades of neuropsychological expertise into 21st century medical practices that are open and near where children live and play. Their management team is experienced and shares our passion for data-driven decision making and I look forward to working with them," Wheldon said in the release.

MHS, an international company with products in more than 70 countries, aligns scientific research and data with technologies to create, market and sell leading assessments that help inform critical decisions in the areas of mental health, education, talent development and public safety, according to MHS.

Newton said in the release, “Our research partnership with MHS is very exciting and will include combining artificial intelligence and machine learning with our respective products and services. These are exciting times to be in the MedTech field.”