ATRO Medical and the EIC Accelerator: Meniscus Still in Trials
ATRO Medical, based in Nijmegen, makes Artimis, a polymer prosthesis to replace the meniscus in patients who have chronic knee pain after it was removed. Its EIC project counted 350,000 relatively young patients missing the lateral meniscus, the one on the outside of the knee, with 70,000 new cases a year and no clinical solution. The implant is meant to postpone a total knee replacement.
The European Innovation Council granted €2,499,403 towards AL U KNEED, a €3.6 million project from April 2023 to March 2026, to "finalize pre-clinical activities, conduct a FIH-study, and obtain CE-marking" by 2026. The first lateral patient was treated in October 2024 at Radboud University Medical Center, according to ATRO. In February 2026, a month before the project ended, the company raised €3 million to prepare pivotal trials in the US and Europe. No CE Mark has been announced.
Company file
- Legal entity
- ATRO Medical BV, Nijmegen, Netherlands
- CEO
- Maarten van der Zanden, since February 2026
- Founder and CMO
- Tony van Tienen
- Product
- Artimis meniscus prosthesis, formerly Trammpolin; medial and lateral versions
- Investors
- 819 Capital, Thuja Capital, Bolwork, DSM-Firmenich Ventures, Samaplast
- EIC project
- AL U KNEED, 1 Apr 2023 to 31 Mar 2026
- EIC funding
- Grant first
Where ATRO Medical Stands Now
The February 2026 round came from 819 Capital, Thuja Capital, Bolwork International Investment, DSM-Firmenich Ventures and Samaplast, and was used to expand clinical evidence, prepare pivotal trials and improve manufacturing and regulatory readiness. Chairman Michiel Schwartz said: "We have cracked the code for patients with post-meniscectomy pain." In June 2026 the FDA granted the lateral implant Breakthrough Device designation, which the medial version already had. The company has published no clinical results.
The record
An artificial meniscus still in first studies
The EIC project was to end with CE marking by 2026. It ended in March 2026 with a first-in-human study under way and pivotal trials still being prepared.
- Oct 2018AIR study startsMedial meniscus implant; later halted prematurely
- Oct 2021AIR2 study startsRedesigned medial implant, 10 patients planned
- Mar 2022EIC Accelerator cut-offAL U KNEED: lateral meniscus prosthesisgrant first
- Apr 2023EIC project startsPre-clinical work, first-in-human study, CE marking€2.50M grant
- Oct 2024First lateral patientRadboudumc, EARTH study of 16 patients
- Feb 2026Funding roundTo prepare pivotal trials in the US and Europe€3M
- Mar 2026EIC project endsNo CE Mark announced
- Jun 2026FDA Breakthrough designationFor the lateral implant
CORDIS, ClinicalTrials.gov and ATRO Medical.
The Technology: A Polymer Meniscus
ATRO first tested a medial implant, for the inner side of the knee. Its first AIR study, registered on ClinicalTrials.gov, enrolled 5 patients from 2018 and was terminated as "halted prematurely" in 2021; a follow-up study, AIR2, planned 10. The EIC project applied the approach to the lateral side: the report lists "3x1 million dynamic endurance tests", mechanical and pull-out testing and production of five prosthesis sizes before the lateral EARTH study.
The evidence
Three small registered studies
Planned or actual enrolment as registered on ClinicalTrials.gov. The first AIR study was terminated as "halted prematurely".
ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT03696836, NCT05297175, NCT06705985.
What the EIC Project Promised, and What CORDIS Shows
The EIC project
The EU paid 70% of a €3.6M project
AL U KNEED ran from April 2023 to March 2026.
CORDIS project 190115658. Values in € millions.
The only published report covers April 2023 to June 2024, when the first-in-human documents were with the ethics committee and approval was expected "in the coming weeks". It targeted market entry in 2026 after CE marking, and commissioned a health economics model for later publication. The final period of the project has no public report, and the CE marking it promised has not been announced.
- Pre-clinical workDeliveredEndurance and pull-out tests.
- First-in-human studyStartedFirst patient October 2024.
- CE marking by 2026Not announcedPivotal trials pending.
- Health economics modelNot publishedCommissioned in 2024.
The Money
ATRO does not publish accounts or its total funding. Its site lists earlier support from EUROSTARS and the Dutch Arthritis Society. Without a CE Mark it has no product it can sell.
The money
Disclosed funding since the EIC award
In € millions. ATRO has not disclosed its total funding.
CORDIS; ATRO Medical, February 2026.
What Cannot Be Checked
Questions for the EIC
How many lateral patients have been treated and with what results, why the first medial study was halted, and when a CE application will be filed are not public.
Why Europe Should Care
The EIC funded a Dutch device aimed at a group of patients with, by its own account, no treatment option. The work is going ahead with new investors, but on a longer path than the one the EIC paid for: pivotal trials first, CE marking later.
What the project promised
Pre-clinical work, a first-in-human study and CE marking of a lateral meniscus prosthesis by 2026.
What the record shows
A first study started in October 2024, a €3 million round, FDA breakthrough status and no CE Mark.
The Verdict
Progress, but not the finish line
ATRO Medical got its lateral implant into patients with EIC money. It did not reach the CE marking that was the project's end point, and it has published no data on how the patients are doing.
ATRO Medical and the EIC have not been asked for comment for this article. It is based entirely on public records and published statements, linked throughout.
Industry
HealthMedical devices
- Focus
- Orthopaedic and spine devices
- Technologies
- Biomaterials
- Implantable devices
- Keywords
- Meniscus replacement
- Knee pain
- Knee replacement
- Orthopaedic surgery