Neuronetics Inc. forged a new specialty of sorts, the interventional psychiatrist. Unlike other interventional approaches, the externally applied NeuroStar delivers transcranial magnetic stimulation to the precise area of the brain responsible for intractable depression. The device is changing the lives of psychiatrists who launched “TMS” clinics, hoping to capture the early success, and potentially creating opportunities for medical devices designed to treat other brain-related disorders.

The global recession that struck last September drove many device investors into hiding. This left a barren financial landscape for device companies to subsist on. But some are finding the funds they need, and they're sharing their survival stories.

The seeds planted in neurostimulation ventures over the past 10 years have produced more disappointments than results, but the fallow period is over. The Food & Drug Administration recently cleared Neuronetics to begin selling its NeuroStar TMS as a treatment for people who haven't responded to a drug regimen taken during their current episode of depression. This is good news for scores of venture-backed neurostimulation companies, although Neuronetics is somewhat unique. It is developing a non-invasive device that delivers magnetic, rather than electrical pulses.