Health start-up tackling the UK's back and neck crisis

Vitrue Health, the digital musculoskeletal (MSK) health platform for workplaces, has raised a further $4m (£3.2m) in funding, taking their total raised to $7m (£5.56m), to improve the way employers assess, prevent, and treat MSK conditions at work. MMC Ventures and Hambro Perks led the round, with Simplyhealth Ventures, Crista Galli Ventures, and Chris Bruce also involved.

MSK conditions - often manifesting as back and neck pain - affect an estimated 1.7b people around the world, ranging from short-term conditions like muscle strain, to rheumatoid arthritis and chronic back conditions.

MSK disorders account for 24 per cent of all working days lost due to work-related ill health, losing British employers 30m work days per year.

Since launching in 2018, Vitrue works with companies such as Bupa, the NHS, Hastings Direct and Campari across 30 countries to prevent and intervene before MSK issues become problematic. 

Developed following co-founders Shane Lowe’s PhD in advanced motion capture technology to predict future injuries and Alexandra Haslehurst’s masters degree from Cambridge University in biomechanics, Vitrue Health uses computer vision and AI to analyse the posture and ergonomics of home, site and office-based workers, and provides a personalised program to improve their equipment use, behaviour, risk prevention, injury management, and even psychology. 

Originally developed with inspiration from injury prevention strategies in professional athletes, 92 per cent of users have reported a reduction of pain after using the platform.

The investment will be used to further grow the team and advance its expansion across the US and new markets in Europe. The capital will also fund research into other forms of assessment and clinical use cases.

Shane Lowe, Co-Founder and CEO at Vitrue Health, said: “Musculoskeletal health conditions have been a societal problem across the world for decades, and our data shows that rates of pain have massively increased since the rise of hybrid working. With this new funding, we’ll be able to continue our growth to reduce the financial and health costs for employers and their teams.” 

Simon Menashy, Partner at MMC Ventures, said: “We’ve been tracking Vitrue Health and the evolution of its computer vision technology for several years. The team is highly technical with a strong clinical skill set, and we believe they’ve found a strong use case with evidenced product-market fit that can eliminate musculoskeletal pain for millions of people.”

Nick Sharp, Partner at Hambro Perks, added: “Vitrue has made great progress in its vision to fix a global pain point with their unique tech solution. We’ve been very impressed with the product and commercial development, and the evidence showing prevention in MSK issues and a reduction in pain for those living with conditions.” 

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