One in ten people in the world has a chronic cough.
NELA helps to make changes and frequency of your cough measurable.
NELA Today*: The Answer to Chronic Cough
One in ten people worldwide experiences chronic cough, but for about 40 percent of them, the cause remains unknown. Typically, the only information available for a more detailed diagnosis comes from patients’ personal accounts of their coughing. That’s where our innovative solution, NELA, steps in. NELA can objectively track coughs and store all the relevant data, providing a more accurate picture for diagnosis.
Understanding cough: Possible reasons for chronic cough.
Asthma
The chronic respiratory disease asthma affects an estimated 262 million people worldwide. The disease is caused by inflammation and narrowing of the airways. Sufferers have symptoms such as coughing, wheezing, shortness of breath and a feeling of tightness in the chest.
COPD
COPD – chronic obstructive pulmonary disease – is a serious disease. With 3.23 million deaths in 2019, it is one of the leading causes of death worldwide. COPD includes conditions such as emphysema and chronic bronchitis. The symptoms are mainly cough with phlegm, difficulty breathing and fatigue.
Alpha-1 Antitrypsin Deficiency
It is estimated that up to 20,000 people in Germany suffer from alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency. It is a hereditary metabolic disease in which an important protective protein for the lungs is missing, which leads to a progressive breakdown of lung tissue. Possible symptoms include shortness of breath, cough and sputum.
Do you have a chronic cough and want to support medical research?
Insights into practice – that’s how satisfied previous users are
242 participants in our user studies confirm: NELA delivers what it promises.
NELA tomorrow*: Collecting and evaluating data objectively.
NELA offers a wide range of applications and generates objectively comparable data. The goal: to improve the quality of life of patients through forward-looking technical solutions and to provide medical professionals with verifiable data on cough symptoms for the monitoring, diagnosis and treatment of chronic cough.
Would you like to find out more about how NELA can advance research in the future?
Gain insights into personal experiences from our NELA community
Holger, 61 - Person living with COPD
” …with NELA I can see better how I am doing over all… “
Holger has been diagnosed with COPD for 8 years. Today, he has less than 30% of his lung volumes left and starts each morning with a cough. Nevertheless, Holger doesn’t let it get him down. He makes the best of his situation and enjoys the “good days”.
Andrea, 50 - Person living with asthma
“I already feel like NELA’s Grandma, as if I have really become part of the NELA family by now.”
Andrea has had severe asthma since early childhood. Coughing, breathlessness and the constant fear of recurring breathlessness always dictate her life.
Frank, 52 - Person living with Alpha-1 Antitrypsin deficiency
“…Coughing is a part of my life and I want to understand it better …”
Frank has been suffering from Alpha 1 Antitrypsin Deficiency for nearly 20 years.
Become part of our NELA community
Carepath Technologies: Shaping the Future of Healthcare Together
Carepath Technologies is the face behind NELA. Our motivation: To make a significant contribution to modern healthcare with sophisticated technology and to help shape the future of diagnostics and treatment of diseases. The focus of our work is on those who are at stake: those affected by chronic cough.
NELA builds on expertise: Our experts
Dr. Thomas Hering
Prof. Dr. Nikola Maria Stenzel
Dr. Peter Kardos
Dr. Charlotte Kleen
Dr. Christoph Kuntze
Holger, 61
Person living with COPD
“…with NELA I can see better how I am doing over all…”
How did you come to NELA?
I came back from rehab and stopped smoking straight away. From one day to the next, without any support – just bang: that’s it! Then I searched the internet for information on how to breathe better again. That’s when I came across the online breathing tutorials of Nico Lorenz. He had recommended NELA, and so I took part in a study.
How have you been involved in NELA so far?
NELA was at my home for three days and afterwards I answered questions about it for the NELA team. At first I couldn’t believe how interested they were in my answers and in my whole COPD story.
We talked several times, always via video call, because I’m stuck here on the North Sea island and can’t easily leave because of my COPD. I enjoy it and it also helps me to exchange ideas and contribute to the project.
What do you like about NELA?
With NELA I’ll be able to better see how I am doing overall. l In the future, I can simply share this with my doctor and no longer have to travel halfway around the world for every appointment at the doctor’s office. With NELA, I will be able to share this information at a distance.
Andrea, 50
Person living with asthma
“I already feel like NELA’s Grandma, as if I have really become part of the NELA family by now.”
How are you in contact with the NELA team?
From the very beginning, its been very nice to be in contact with the NELA team. You can always sense the personal interest in the idea of wanting NELA to “help” in dealing with a disease.
We’ve been in contact for several years now and they always get in touch and keep me up to date on the latest developments in the project.
I have also visited them in Berlin to get a personal impression. As a joke, I said, “I already feel like NELA’s grandma, as if I have really become part of the NELA family by now.”
How have you been involved with NELA so far?
I came into contact with NELA through my doctor and took part in the study to collect cough data. I like the team and that the cough is not seen as a separate symptom, but holistically.
What do you like about NELA?
I think it’s a great idea that in the future, you can keep better control of your condition with the help of modern technology. As long as I can do something myself, I can change something myself. That’s my motto!
Frank, 52
Person living with Alpha-1 Antitrypsin deficiency
“…Coughing is a part of my life and I want to understand it better …”
Alpha 1 is the “genetic variant” of COPD, which is inherited and very rare. The effects of emphysema have been with him since he was 35 years old. He has been a staff member and an important part of the NELA team since January 2023.
What motivated you to participate in the NELA study?
Coughing is a part of my life and I want to understand it better.
What was it like participating in the study?
It was a really exciting time, three days of testing with NELA. I am generally a bit sceptical about studies, as I have had a few unpleasant experiences. But not with NELA, because it’s just a “cough listener”.
What do you hope to achieve with NELA?
With NELA, my family doctor/lung specialist will be able to give me the right therapy earlier and I won’t run the risk of getting a bad exacerbation that will leave me flat in bed for days.
How did you get involved with NELA as a staff member?
Actually, I came into contact with the NELA team for the first time through my participation in this study. We had quite intense conversations afterwards about my experiences with NELA. Today, I am happy to be part of the NELA team and have the task of providing advice and support to the patients.
Dr. Thomas Hering
Specialist in pulmonary and bronchial medicine
What our expert Dr. Thomas Hering says about NELA
Why I support NELA as an expert
I have a great vision for NELA: the recording of coughs will be a breakthrough, especially in the treatment of unstable COPD patients, whose prognosis can be expected to take a quantum leap for the better thanks to therapy monitoring with the help of cough quantification!
NELA’s products will also be an invaluable aid in the differential diagnosis of the difficult area of chronic cough in the future. We will finally have objective data that will enable us to differentiate between the diverse and often overlapping causes of chronic cough and treat them in a targeted manner.
Dr. Peter Kardos
Internal Medicine Specialist
What our expert Dr. Peter Kardos says about NELA
Why I support NELA as an expert
I support NELA because I believe that objective cough registration closes a large gap between subjective perception and objective measurement data. Therapeutic consequences could be derived from a discrepancy. Furthermore, it is important to objectify the effect of a prescribed therapy. It’s like a blood pressure medication. When I prescribe it, I want to know whether the high blood pressure has been reduced.
Prof. Dr. Nikola Maria Stenzel
Psychological psychotherapist (VT), expert in the field of psychopneumology
What our expert Prof. Dr. Nikola Maria Stenzel says about NELA
Why I support NELA as an expert
For many years, I have been working both scientifically and psychotherapeutically on how to improve the psychological well-being and quality of life of people with chronic lung disease and chronic cough in the long term. What particularly excites me about the NELA products is that they offer the opportunity to combine psychological support systems in synergy with innovative medical devices. In the long term, this could have great potential to sustainably improve the treatment of those affected.
Dr. Charlotte Kleen
Specialist in Neurology, Sleep Medicine and Holistic Telemedicine
What our expert Dr. Charlotte Kleen says about NELA
Why I support NELA as an expert
My patients’ self-efficacy in the management of their chronic illnesses is important to me.
Carepath Technologies is making a valuable contribution here with NELA. Monitoring tools with AI analysis are forward-looking therapy supporters, especially for the leading symptom, cough!
Dr. Christoph Kuntze
General Practitioner
What our expert Dr. Christoph Kuntze says about NELA
Why I support NELA as an expert
I have been working as a GP for 27 years now. I have had and still have many patients with sometimes severe chronic respiratory diseases. I think the idea of recognizing an impending infection in advance and being able to act more quickly is excellent. That’s why I’m enthusiastically involved as a consultant doctor from the practice for the practice.
