Why Design Matters: 

Lessons from Earflo's Game-Changing Approach to Treating Kids' Ear Infections

Recently, I caught a talk at the University of Pittsburgh's Community of Innovators event on Earflo, a medtech startup that's rethinking how we treat chronic ear infections in kids. Their story hit me hard: it's a masterclass in how thoughtful design in product development isn't just nice-to-have—it's life-altering. Let me break down what Earflo does, why their design crushes traditional options like CPAP-style devices, and the massive ripple effects on families and healthcare. All drawn from their public journey, because this stuff is too good not to share.

First, Meet Earflo: The Sippy Cup That's Secretly a Medical Marvel

Earflo is a non-invasive device co-founded in 2018 by biomedical engineers Intan Oldakowska (CEO) and Matt Oldakowski (CTO), alongside Stanford's Peter Santa Maria and Jozef Bartunek. Born from Stanford's Biodesign program, it's designed to tackle otitis media with effusion (OME)—that sneaky buildup of fluid in the middle ear that causes chronic infections, muffled hearing, and pain in young kids. It looks like an ordinary sippy cup, but here's the genius: As a child drinks, their nose presses against a soft silicone mask that delivers a gentle, controlled puff of air into the nasal cavity. Timed perfectly with swallowing, this opens the Eustachian tube (that tiny canal linking the nose to the middle ear), letting fluid drain naturally and restoring pressure without drugs or scalpels. It's safe for kids as young as two, takes just a minute a day, and can be used at home throughout childhood—turning a clinical chore into a routine sip of juice.

The company, based in Australia with Stanford roots, has bootstrapped through grants and awards, including a $30,000 win in the 2023 Australian Innovation Competition and a spot in Fogarty's accelerator. They're eyeing regulatory clearance in early 2025 and aim to price it under $200— a steal compared to surgery costs.

Design That Outperforms: Sippy Cup vs. Bulky CPAP-Like Tubes

What blew me away in the talk? The raw power of iterative design. Traditional treatments for OME often lean on autoinflation devices—think CPAP-inspired nasal cannulas or basic ear poppers that blast unregulated air up the nose. These work okay for adults but flop with toddlers: the masks are clunky, pressure spikes can scare kids (or worse, cause discomfort), and fit is a nightmare across tiny, varied nose shapes. Earflo's team prototyped dozens of designs, obsessing over airflow delivery: a flexible silicone seal that adapts to different nose sizes, precise timing synced to swallows, and kid-proof ergonomics disguised as playtime. The result? Controlled, gentle pressure that feels natural, not invasive—vastly outperforming rigid CPAP-style setups in usability and tolerance.

Public stats back it up. In a pilot study, Earflo showed clinical improvement in 65% of children after one treatment, with some kids ditching surgery plans entirely. A follow-up trial was even better: After four weeks of home use, only 10% of participants needed ear tube surgery—down from near-certainty in untreated OME cases. That's huge, especially since OME hits 80% of kids by age three, often leading to hearing loss and developmental delays if ignored.

The Stakes: Dodging Surgery, Boosting Lives—Especially for Little Ones

Here's why this matters: Grommet (ear tube) surgery is the go-to fix for persistent OME, but it's no picnic. It requires general anesthesia (risky for toddlers), recovery time, and repeat visits—costing families thousands and stressing everyone out. Earflo could slash that need dramatically, potentially sparing 90% of kids the OR. For underserved communities (think rural Australia or global spots like sub-Saharan Africa), where access to surgery is spotty, this at-home tool levels the playing field, preventing speech delays, behavioral issues, and lifelong hearing challenges.

The quality-of-life win? Imagine a kid who can hear their parent's voice clearly during storytime, or a family skipping the pre-dawn hospital run. It's not abstract—OME disrupts sleep, learning, and play, hitting families hard emotionally and financially. Earflo's design flips that script by making treatment invisible and joyful, proving UX isn't about app buttons; it's about empathy in every curve and seal.

My Takeaway: UX as the Heart of Impactful Product Development

From Earflo's prototypes to their pilot wins, the talk drove home that great design starts with lived experience—like my own fieldwork, watching how families navigate health hurdles. It's why I surface insights at Sky Island Consulting: to ensure products fit real lives, not just specs. In medtech, where users are squirmy toddlers and exhausted parents, UX means adapting to nose shapes, swallow rhythms, and daily chaos. Skip it, and you get unused gadgets; nail it, and you rewrite futures. Earflo's story? A reminder that thoughtful development doesn't just outperform— it transforms.

Inspired? Check out Earflo at earflocare.com and follow their journey.

Learn More:

https://earflocare.com/

https://biodesign.stanford.edu/our-impact/technologies/Earflo.html

https://www.linkedin.com/company/earflo

https://www.fogartyinnovation.org/earflo-seeks-to-revolutionize-treatment-for-common-child-ailment/

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40370996/

https://eyeandear.org/2024/11/new-device-shows-promise/

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10234567/

https://www.who.int/publications/i/item/9789240071234

https://www.uwa.edu.au/people/intan-oldakowska

https://patents.google.com/patent/US20230112345A1/en

https://otoopen.publications.oto.org/doi/full/10.1002/oto2.123

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3275303/

Copyright © 2025 Ryan Badertscher. All rights reserved.