A Long Island speech pathologist said a pioneering bio implant stopped her “horrific” rheumatoid arthritis in its tracks.
Massapequa’s Dawn Steiner, 58, said even an easy handshake would mean agony — and after 15 years she retreated right into a reclusive lifestyle.
“My husband had to assist me dress,” she told The Post.
“I couldn’t wash my hair. I could barely take a shower by myself.”
But her latest state-of-the-art bio-implant has miraculously regulated the RA with minimal invasiveness — and only a minute of every day stimulation. It’s linked to Steiner’s vagus nerve, an important connector between the brain, major organs, and other bodily functions.
“We discovered a reflex that slows down inflammation by sending signals to the immune system through the vagus nerve,” said Dr. Kevin Tracey, president and CEO of Northwell’s Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research on Long Island.
“The vagus nerve carries the signals that turn off inflammation … It’s like pushing on the brakes of your automobile.”
The corporate he co-founded, SetPoint Medical, designed the smaller-than-a-quarter bio-implant “sitting” atop the vagus nerve within the front of Steiner’s neck with hardly a scar to indicate.
“My pain was at a seven or an eight out of ten, now it’s at a one,” Steiner said of the life-changing device that uses AI tech and has been functioning for a few yr.
“I actually imagine that that is the longer term.”
Touching a nerve
The still-to-be FDA-approved approach began in a 2023 medical trial of 242 Americans that Steiner was open to because she believed she was out of other options.
“We’re huge Mets fans and there have been seasons I couldn’t go to a single game,” she said.
“I’d come home from work and get right into bed. The entire weekend was spent in bed, or on the couch sleeping.”
Before the implant, doctors began Steiner on methotrexate, “which is a like a low-dose chemo,” she said.
That led to trying eight different biologic medications that will take hours to infuse — plus “the unwanted side effects may be cancer and death,” said Steiner.
She experienced her entire face and other parts of her body go numb to the purpose that medical professionals tested her for multiple sclerosis.
“They might tell me it takes as much as six months for it to kick in,” she said.
“All that point you’re in horrific pain, and switching off took one other few months.”
Last yr, after being involved within the trial, Steiner reached a breaking point and opted to have the surgery that took only an hour by Northwell’s Dr. Ashesh Mehta.
“The unknowns weren’t anything more unsettling than the medications I used to be already on.”
‘Pioneering advance’
Tracey explained that the high-tech device works with an antenna connecting to a health care provider’s tablet for two-way readings and modifications every six weeks. The implant itself must be swapped out every ten years.
“This will likely be a highly significant advance, a pioneering advance, as a brand new approach to give therapy to individuals who seriously need it,” said Tracey, who just published a book on the vagus nerve titled “The Great Nerve.”
Steiner said she only feels an occasional buzz like a cellphone from the device during its every day minute of activity — she has it timed for five a.m. as a biological alarm clock — and hardly knows it’s there otherwise.
It’s charged through a band that’s lighter than a bar of soap, which Steiner wears for under half-hour weekly.
“I actually have it around my neck on Sunday mornings while I’m doing the dishes and other home tasks,” she said.
Now, Steiner is back at Citi Field rooting on her Mets, going to see her favorite band, The Foo Fighters, and going for walks on the beaches of the island.
Seeing its early success, Tracey is optimistic that the FDA will move quickly to green light the implant for broader use.
“This might be as soon because the summer,” he said.
A Long Island speech pathologist said a pioneering bio implant stopped her “horrific” rheumatoid arthritis in its tracks.
Massapequa’s Dawn Steiner, 58, said even an easy handshake would mean agony — and after 15 years she retreated right into a reclusive lifestyle.
“My husband had to assist me dress,” she told The Post.
“I couldn’t wash my hair. I could barely take a shower by myself.”
But her latest state-of-the-art bio-implant has miraculously regulated the RA with minimal invasiveness — and only a minute of every day stimulation. It’s linked to Steiner’s vagus nerve, an important connector between the brain, major organs, and other bodily functions.
“We discovered a reflex that slows down inflammation by sending signals to the immune system through the vagus nerve,” said Dr. Kevin Tracey, president and CEO of Northwell’s Feinstein Institutes for Medical Research on Long Island.
“The vagus nerve carries the signals that turn off inflammation … It’s like pushing on the brakes of your automobile.”
The corporate he co-founded, SetPoint Medical, designed the smaller-than-a-quarter bio-implant “sitting” atop the vagus nerve within the front of Steiner’s neck with hardly a scar to indicate.
“My pain was at a seven or an eight out of ten, now it’s at a one,” Steiner said of the life-changing device that uses AI tech and has been functioning for a few yr.
“I actually imagine that that is the longer term.”
Touching a nerve
The still-to-be FDA-approved approach began in a 2023 medical trial of 242 Americans that Steiner was open to because she believed she was out of other options.
“We’re huge Mets fans and there have been seasons I couldn’t go to a single game,” she said.
“I’d come home from work and get right into bed. The entire weekend was spent in bed, or on the couch sleeping.”
Before the implant, doctors began Steiner on methotrexate, “which is a like a low-dose chemo,” she said.
That led to trying eight different biologic medications that will take hours to infuse — plus “the unwanted side effects may be cancer and death,” said Steiner.
She experienced her entire face and other parts of her body go numb to the purpose that medical professionals tested her for multiple sclerosis.
“They might tell me it takes as much as six months for it to kick in,” she said.
“All that point you’re in horrific pain, and switching off took one other few months.”
Last yr, after being involved within the trial, Steiner reached a breaking point and opted to have the surgery that took only an hour by Northwell’s Dr. Ashesh Mehta.
“The unknowns weren’t anything more unsettling than the medications I used to be already on.”
‘Pioneering advance’
Tracey explained that the high-tech device works with an antenna connecting to a health care provider’s tablet for two-way readings and modifications every six weeks. The implant itself must be swapped out every ten years.
“This will likely be a highly significant advance, a pioneering advance, as a brand new approach to give therapy to individuals who seriously need it,” said Tracey, who just published a book on the vagus nerve titled “The Great Nerve.”
Steiner said she only feels an occasional buzz like a cellphone from the device during its every day minute of activity — she has it timed for five a.m. as a biological alarm clock — and hardly knows it’s there otherwise.
It’s charged through a band that’s lighter than a bar of soap, which Steiner wears for under half-hour weekly.
“I actually have it around my neck on Sunday mornings while I’m doing the dishes and other home tasks,” she said.
Now, Steiner is back at Citi Field rooting on her Mets, going to see her favorite band, The Foo Fighters, and going for walks on the beaches of the island.
Seeing its early success, Tracey is optimistic that the FDA will move quickly to green light the implant for broader use.
“This might be as soon because the summer,” he said.
