Locally manufactured pain management product gets FDA approval, comes to stores soon
Leaders with Chattanooga-based business Hollywog got approval to market two pain management products that they manufacture at their Amnicola Highway location.
“If you have back pain, you’re able to wear this device just very discreetly under your clothes,” Chuck Thomas, president of Hollywog, said. “Whenever you have the pain, you can turn it on, and it basically blocks the pain. Instead of swallowing a pill, it blocks it using electrical stimulation.”
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved the two products—WiTouch and WiTouch Pro wireless remote-controlled devices—which are the first wireless remote-controlled pain relief devices that incorporate transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation technology, according to Hollywog leaders.
The WiTouch has been approved for over-the-counter sales, and the WiTouch Pro is cleared for prescription use.
Thomas said that his staff of seven is knowledgeable in pain management.
According to the National Institute of Health Statistics, as reported by the American Academy of Pain Medicine, back pain is common, and 27 percent of surveyed respondents said low back pain was the most common of the four types of pain.
Back pain is also the leading cause of disability in Americans under 45 years of age.
The process of getting FDA approval is long. Before leaders can submit it to the FDA, the products must be tested in an independent safety lab, Thomas said.
Core Products distributes the products, which will start to be available next week at local chiropractor offices or independent pharmacies, he also said.
The products are launching nationally today at a trade show in Orlando, Fla.
“It’s going to take a while to get the product out, but what we are really looking for is awareness,” Thomas said. “Once people start asking their chiropractor or physicians or independent pharmacy, if they don’t have it, they will be able to easily get it for patients.”
The retail price for the over-the-counter product will be less than $150, Thomas said.
He also said that these products make pain management more convenient and manageable.
“The whole Hollywog mission is to evolve existing products into something better,” he said. “We’ve taken proven clinical effectiveness and packaged it up into something that is extremely easy to use.”
