It’s not very often a founder says “I hope I haven't grossed you out” at the end of our conversation, but today’s startup was an exception.

While some readers might indeed be ‘grossed out’ by the topic today, all too many of you will read it and nod along or wince at your own memories of the issue at hand

PeriPear is a startup dealing with an all-too-common, and sometimes very serious, problem: perineal tearing during childbirth.

But first:

• 🔌 We’re partnering with the upcoming Connected North event, and here’s an opportunity for startups:

• 🔌 Be part of the Startup Village in Manchester on April 23-24. Pitch to investors and industry leaders, gain exposure, and enter the Pitching Competition for a chance to win a free booth at Connected Britain 2025. Connect with 2,500+ professionals and tell your story. ✨ Apply now ✨

– Martin

PeriPear wants to start a revolution in the delivery room

I didn’t realise how common this issue is until I started talking to women about it, and found that some of the mothers I know understood the problem better than they’d like. Perineal tear injuries occur in as many as 90% of vaginal births, and nearly half of those will require surgical repair.

As midwife Nina van Schaick explains, this is “time consuming, resource consuming, and also potentially very traumatic... Even with repair, some of the [patients with] more severe grades of tear will live with lifelong consequences. And in fact, all grades of tear can result in life consequences in terms of mental, physical health, and also sexual function.”

Van Schaick was frustrated with the lack of innovation in reducing these problems, which can result in expensive surgery and longer hospital stays for new parents, and complicate what should be a happy occasion.

Currently, a warm compress is best practice for reducing risk of tears, but van Schaick says that in many cases it doesn’t happen.

“People are aware of the evidence around using a warm compress during the second stage [of labour]. They are aware of the benefits, but they can't use it in their practice, because they're saying it is messy, it is bulky, it is not practical, it gets cold, you have to hold it on. There are so many facets to why it's not working for people,” van Schaick says.

“We know that it's being used in less than 15% of births now. So if we could move that so that it's been used in 75% or 85% of births, and that's a 50% reduction in severity and incidence of trauma, that would be incredible, in terms of both the holistic aspect for the women or birthing people and their families, and their breastfeeding journey if their choosing to do that, but also in terms of healthcare and resources.”

In addition to the care cost associated with these tears, healthcare providers can face expensive legal action due to poorly carried-out repairs following tears.

As a solution to all of this, van Schaick she started work on a startup to make a difference. PeriPear is developing a device designed to be used during childbirth that could significantly reduce the problem of perineal tear injuries.

Ergonomically designed to stick to the perineum during the second stage of labour, this is not a medical device. In its current form it is single-use and applied heat to the area susceptible to tear. Eventually, the startup plans to develop a version that can be used multiple times through late pregnancy all the way to early feeding.

The story so far

While still working as a midwife for the time being, van Schaick has co-founded Oxford-based PeriPear with Eviatar Natan, who has depth of startup and academic experience in both the UK and Israel.

Living close to each other, they became friends. In December 2023, van Schaick came to Natan with her vision for removing her professional frustration with the way tears are currently dealt with.

“I got very frustrated that we haven't innovated in childbirth since we invented forceps. We basically invented forceps, cesarean sections, and some uterotonic drugs and some antibiotics. And went ‘right, off you go’,” van Schaick says.

The pair have a strong working relationship, she adds: “We love working together. Our brains work really well together. We have a complementary skill set, and we're both a bit strange. So our quirks kind of mesh.”

PeriPear is currently part of the Zinc venture builder programme and the Accelerating FemTech programme to help the pair move forward.

Product-wise, van Schaick says they’re less than two months away from having their working prototype in their hands.

“We're working with designers in Israel. We interviewed four design agencies in the UK. They were all very big and wanted a lot of money, but we found some people who actually have been working in this area, sticking things to people's perineums, for a very long time, mostly in the incontinence space, so they're very well versed in this area.”

This experience is very important, it turns out.

“[The perineum] is problematic in terms of finding the right adhesives, not only because it's wet and moving, but also because the skin is very sensitive and potentially very damaged and very friable. We have to be super-careful that we're not going to cause more damage when we take the product off. It has to be bio-compatible and extremely safe, but also it has to look very safe. It has to look very approachable,” van Schaick.

Once the prototype is ready, PeriPear plans to go into hospitals and start testing it in a real environment. Van Schaick is confident as they iterate on the prototype they’ll reach a compelling, successful alternative to current practice.

Subscribe to Premium to read the rest.