De Oro Devices – A Forward-Moving Company

Nexstride

OUR STORY

NexStride’s story began when an amazing friendship developed from the shared dream of a young biomedical engineering college student named Sidney Collin and an American veteran named Jack Brill.

When Sidney was introduced to Jack, he told her how he’d struggled for years with Parkinson’s disease. Simply trying to walk was a major challenge for Jack. So much of his independence had been lost. Jack knew that there were visual and auditory signals or cues that he could use to be able to walk smoothly because he used them with his physical therapist, but when he went home he was in a wheelchair, unable to walk. Jack wanted to create a device that would allow him to use these visual and auditory cues at home to be able to walk – to go to the bathroom by himself or go on a walk with his wife, Sandy.

Sidney looked into these visual and auditory cues and found that there were already over 100 peer-reviewed articles showing the efficacy of these cues in improving walking.  They were already standard of practice in any physical therapy clinic. She thought it was so ridiculous that these cues are so clearly effective, yet there wasn’t a way for Jack to be able to use them at home. She set out to create a way to make these physical therapy cueing techniques accessible anywhere.

Sidney promised to do everything in her power to help Jack. And just as Jack had thought, Sidney had the perfect educational background and passion for the task. She tenaciously explored the research and set to work developing a device that could help Jack walk.

When she was done, Sidney named her new invention NexStride. She designed it so it was small and discreet for Jack. Sidney also made sure it was easy to attach to Jack’s walker or cane. She even made the device’s metronome and green laser signal adjustable. This way, Jack could set his own pace at any time for whatever walking speed worked best for him.

Well, needless to say, Jack could not wait to try NexStride and when he did, he got going, and going meant walking anywhere, any time he wanted. The sheer elation of having his freedom back again and seeing his hope actually realized, was something he wanted to share with everyone.

Jack insisted that Sidney come and meet his Parkinson’s Disease support group. He wanted to tell them all about it. When Sidney obliged, she was surprised to meet a much larger group of people with walking challenges. Once this group of people saw Jack get up, walk, turn, then stride across the room and back, their jaws dropped. After their amazement at seeing Jack walk, they surrounded Sidney with requests asking if she could help them, too.

Once Sidney realized the profound impact of her invention on people’s confidence, sense of security, and independence, she decided then and there that she must make NexStride available to help more people. She and William Thompson, her fellow co-founder, launched De Oro Devices, a company inspired to build products that can improve mobility, independence, and quality of life.

Awards and Recognition for NexStride

Since creating NexStride, we’ve been recognized for our work to restore mobility, relieve anxiety, and help people living with Parkinson’s Disease retain their independence.

BIOMEDevice

BIOMEDevice Startup Pitch Competition

First Place

Centrol Cost Angel Con

Central Coast Angel Conference

First place and $100,000 in funding

TCU Values and Ventures

TCU’s Values and Ventures Competition

Elevator Pitch First Place
Marjorie and James Sly Innovation Award

“The NexStride is working beautifully. She uses the word ‘amazing’. She is moving about as she hasn’t for a long time. I would describe it as transformative for us.”

~ Thomas Brown, Care Giver

The journey has just begun

Today, NexStride has helped countless individuals take back their freedom and their confidence — and we’re just getting started. A single step can be vital and we’re honored to help you take it.

Elderly Man with Walking Device

How does cueing help?

A cue is an audio, visual or audio-visual signal that helps a Parkinson’s patient re-establish a connection with neural pathways and helps treat the symptom of Freezing of Gait (FoG).

The treatment of FoG could offer a breakthrough in helping people with Parkinson’s recover their independence, restore their motor ability, and increase confidence. Sensory and auditory cueing could be the key to assisting people from experiencing this debilitating symptom.

As Seen in the News

Mustang News
Davis Phinney Foundation
Medical Device and Diagostic Industry Qmed
Quality of Life Plus
KSBY News
Cal Poly

Want to learn more about NexStride?

Meet the Team

Sidney Collin

Dr. Cori Lathan

CEO

Sidney Collin

Sidney Collin

Co-Founder, CTO

William Thompson

William Thompson

Co-Founder, Marketing & Operations

Harshini Rallapalli

Harshini Rallapalli

Clinical Director