Dr. Elizabeth Clayborne used to make do-it-yourself nose clips out of tongue depressors to stop patients' nosebleeds from flowing onto the floor.
The University of Maryland emergency room physician is hunting for $4 million in seed funding to bring a device that replaces the tongue depressors — NasaClip — to a wider market. Patients can treat their nosebleeds at home using the device instead of rushing to a hospital and it gives doctors a tool more advanced than a few sticks and some tape. Nosebleeds may seem like a one-time inconvenience, but Clayborne sees that it could be a large market. For around 15% of people, nosebleeds are a chronic condition that can impede daily functioning, according to Columbia University.
Around half a million people in the United States go to the ER for nosebleeds each year, Clayborne said. By reducing the number of people who go to the hospital for nosebleeds NasaClip could reduce the strain on the hospital system and give patients a cheaper option than an expensive emergency room visit. The company used money from two $1.1 million convertible notes, a form of short-term debt that converts to equity, for its pre-seed round for the research and development necessary for the April launch.
Clayborne plans to use the upcoming $4 million seed round to develop a version of the NasaClip device that includes medication for people suffering from nose bleeds. NasaClip works by applying gentle pressure on the nose to ease the flow of blood, while sponges deliever medication. The clip is intended to ensure that people with chronic nose bleeds can still work or go about their day without having to constantly hold their noses to slow bleeding.
The Maryland Technology Development Corp. State Small Business Credit Initiative has invested $250,000 into the company. NasaClip has also received support from angel investors like Gina Nisbeth and John Shufeldt for its pre-seed funding. Shufeldt’s XCellerent ventures plan to lead the company's upcoming $4 million round, Clayborne said.
Clayborne cited angel groups that focus on women and people of color, like Women of Color Connecting, an arm of the Institute for Entrepreneurial Leadership, as an important piece of her pre-seed round.
"By the time they see me in the ER, they've probably been bleeding for an hour or more," Clayborne said. "They're super frustrated. But for us as ER doctors, they're considered like a lower acuity patient, so they would have to wait a long time and then they get more frustrated."
Clayborne is working with Baltimore’s Harbor Designs and Manufacturing for around 10,000 NasaClips. Clayborne is currently the only full-time employee at NasaClip, but she recently hired a director of operations and plans to hire at least three other staff later this year.
