Ionos Medical Wins U.S. Patent for Cold Plasma Device That Treats Nose and Throat Conditions Without Surgery

AAPlasma's medical device subsidiary, Ionos Medical Inc., has been granted U.S. Patent No. 12,685,872, covering a handheld cold plasma device designed to treat chronic conditions of the nose, throat, and ears, including tonsillitis, sinusitis, tonsil stones, and Barrett's esophagus, without surgery or antibiotics.

The patent, titled "Method and Device for Medically Treating Nasal and Throat Conditions with Cold Plasma," issued on July 21, 2026, roughly two and a half years after the application was filed in February 2024. It names Dr. Jeffrey S. Rosenbloom and Dr. Gregory Fridman, AAPlasma's CEO, as inventors.

The problem it targets

Chronic tonsillitis, sinusitis, and related ear-nose-throat conditions are common and costly. Tonsillitis alone accounts for an estimated 2% of hospital visits, and chronic sinusitis affects 6% to 12% of adults in the Western world, with direct treatment costs exceeding $11 billion a year in the United States, according to figures cited in the patent. Standard treatment options are limited to antibiotics, which don't resolve chronic or recurring cases, or surgery, such as a tonsillectomy, which carries the usual risks and recovery time of an invasive procedure.

How the device works

Cold plasma, an ionized gas that generates reactive chemical species without generating damaging heat, has been studied for years as a broad-spectrum antimicrobial. Applying it inside the nose, throat, and ears has been difficult in practice: the tissue is sensitive, the spaces are tight, and generating plasma in ordinary air produces ozone, a byproduct that's unsafe to inhale in concentration.

The patented device addresses that last problem directly. Instead of generating plasma in ambient air, it channels nitrogen gas, or a nitrogen and nitric oxide mixture, through the probe tip while a built-in suction line pulls the resulting gas away from the patient. According to testing described in the patent, this approach cut ozone production by roughly 100-fold compared to air-generated plasma, to levels below current EPA safety thresholds, while also lowering the plasma's operating temperature and, in bacterial inactivation tests against E. coli and Streptococcus pyogenes, matching or exceeding the antimicrobial effect of plasma generated in air.

The probe itself is flexible and sized to reach the tonsils, sinuses, nasal passages, and ear canal, with several tip and channel configurations described in the patent's drawings to suit different treatment sites.

What it means for Ionos Medical

The grant gives Ionos Medical, based in San Antonio, Texas, patent protection through 2044 for the core device and treatment method. It's the company's foothold in a crowded ENT device market and builds on the plasma science AAPlasma has developed since 2017 across defense, environmental, and healthcare applications.

A patent grant establishes intellectual property rights; it is not the same as regulatory clearance to market or sell a medical device. Ionos Medical's path to clinical use would still require the applicable FDA review process.

"[Placeholder quote from Dr. Greg Fridman or Ionos Medical leadership on what this patent means for the company's next steps — please provide or approve before publishing.]"

U.S. Patent No. 12,685,872 B2, issued July 21, 2026. Applicant and assignee: Ionos Medical Inc. Inventors: Jeffrey S. Rosenbloom and Gregory Fridman.