Point-of-care diagnostics
Explore tools that could help clinicians recognise and assess illness where care starts.
Sakaleshpur Shiva Shankara · Shivamogga, Karnataka
Better care for children, wherever care begins.
We connect clinical insight, engineering and medical education to investigate practical point-of-care solutions for newborns, children and adolescents—especially where specialist care and learning resources are hard to reach.
A Karnataka-based healthcare innovation partnership with a rural and resource-conscious focus.
SSS / Healthcare innovation01—04
From clinical need
to wider access.
to wider access.
01Point-of-care
diagnostics
diagnostics
02Practical
therapeutics
therapeutics
03Care pathways
& delivery
& delivery
04Open clinical
education
education
Research, validation and learning grounded in real clinical settings.
Evidence of progress
GRI research funding · KITSSupport for the NeoLumo research programme
ELEVATE 2026 · final roundSelected for the final evaluation round
The mission / Beyond one product
Across the full arc of childhood.
Our ambition is to make high-quality care and knowledge more accessible across newborn, pediatric and adolescent medicine. We begin with problems that matter at the bedside, then test solutions with the evidence and safeguards each one requires.
Practical therapeutics
Study affordable, usable approaches to treatment, with safety and effectiveness established before clinical claims.
Care pathways
Strengthen decisions, referral and delivery across varied clinical and resource settings.
Medical education
Make rigorous, interactive pediatric learning available to healthcare learners regardless of location.
How we work
Clinical need → multidisciplinary design → careful evaluation → accessible implementation. NeoLumo is our current funded research programme; the broader areas above describe the company’s direction.
01 / Current research programmeGRI-supported · investigational
NeoLumo: our first research programme.
NeoLumo investigates a topical zinc oxide nanoparticle nanogel and its potential to support bilirubin photodegradation under controlled light exposure.
The work starts with a need encountered in newborn care and asks a research question before proposing any clinical use. Our aim is to build the evidence needed to assess whether this approach could contribute to more accessible neonatal jaundice care.
Understand the material
Characterise zinc oxide nanoparticles—their structure, size, morphology and dispersion behaviour—to inform formulation decisions.
Develop the formulation
Refine the nanogel matrix and evaluate stability, concentration and compatibility through laboratory studies.
Test the hypothesis
Study bilirubin photodegradation under controlled conditions, with repeat experiments and kinetic analysis.
Evaluate safety and translation
The research plan includes preclinical assessment of local tolerability, systemic absorption and biological effects before any clinical translation.
Research status: NeoLumo is investigational and is not approved for clinical use or commercial distribution. Its safety and effectiveness in newborns have not been established.
Our people
A clinical and engineering partnership.
Our founders bring pediatric practice, medical education and engineering experience to the same table. The company is based in Shivamogga, Karnataka.
Founder & Director · Principal InvestigatorDr. Vikram
Dr. Vikram
Sakaleshpur Kumar
MD (Pediatrics)Professor & Head of PediatricsPediatric & adolescent healthMedical education
Dr. Vikram S Kumar is a pediatrician, medical educator and clinical researcher. He serves as Clinical Professor and Head of Pediatrics at Subbaiah Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre, Shivamogga, and as Senior Consultant in Pediatrics at Sarji Hospital.
As Principal Investigator of NeoLumo, he leads an investigational programme in neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. His wider work spans pediatric and adolescent medicine, clinical teaching, publications and freely accessible learning through Vikkypaedia, with particular attention to resource-limited settings.
Co-founder & Founder Promoter
Mr S S Kumar
Retired Mechanical EngineerCompany Partner
Mr Sakaleshpur Shiva Kumar brings a mechanical engineering background to Sakaleshpur Shiva Shankara. As co-founder, founder promoter and company partner, he shares the company’s commitment to practical healthcare innovation.
Together with Dr. Vikram S Kumar, he represents the partnership of clinical perspective and engineering experience at the heart of SSS.
The experience behind SSS
A track record of practical questions.
Selected examples from Dr. Kumar’s academic, teaching and community work that inform the company’s approach to accessible healthcare.
Can a simple technique make vaccination less distressing?
A 2014 study examined the “cough trick” during vaccination in adolescents—a practical clinical question about the experience of care.
Read the published study ↗Indian Journal of Pain · 28:95–98How do clinicians rehearse high-stakes decisions?
Skills Lab leadership since 2018, simulation-based teaching and emergency-care instructor roles connect clinical knowledge with practice. Vikkypaedia extends that educational work through open online learning.
Explore the learning modules ↓Teaching roles documented in the academic profileWhat happens between hospital visits?
Monthly diabetes and epilepsy follow-up programmes, school health activities and rural outreach camps bring continuity and access into the picture alongside acute care.
Explore the academic & outreach profile ↓Founder’s community work through partner organisationsThese examples describe the founder’s professional work, including work that predates SSS. They are distinct from the company’s current funded research programme.
Explore Dr. Kumar’s full academic profile
Practice, scholarship & serviceA career built around children and learning.
Dr. Kumar’s work spans clinical pediatrics, medical education, infectious diseases, essential newborn care and rural health.
Current appointments
Clinical Professor & Head of Pediatrics
Subbaiah Institute of Medical Sciences and Research Centre, Shivamogga · November 2023–present.
Senior Consultant, Pediatrics
Sarji Hospital, Shivamogga.
Founder & Director · Principal Investigator
Sakaleshpur Shiva Shankara and the NeoLumo research programme.
Education & academic journey
MD, Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine · 2006–2009
B. J. Medical College & Sassoon General Hospital, Pune; Maharashtra University of Health Sciences.
MBBS · 1998–2004
Karnataka Institute of Medical Sciences, Hubli; Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences.
Subbaiah Institute of Medical Sciences
- Clinical Professor · April 2020–October 2023
- Clinical Associate Professor & Head of Unit II · April 2014–April 2020
- Clinical Assistant Professor & Junior Consultant · May 2011–April 2014
Earlier appointments
- Clinical Lecturer / Assistant Professor, St. John’s Medical College Hospital, Bangalore · August 2009–May 2011
- Clinical Tutor / Demonstrator, B. J. Medical College, Pune · May 2007–April 2009
Academic leadership & teaching
- Member Secretary, Subbaiah Research Institute and Subbaiah Medical College
- Director, Skills Lab · since 2018
- Deputy Director, Postgraduate Education · since 2020
- Chairman, Students’ Theory Teaching and Clinical Posting Roster Committees · 2011–2018
- Convener, Hospital Morbidity and Mortality Meeting · 2011–2018
- College Research Committee and Medical Education Cell · 2011–2016
Teaching focuses on bedside clinical reasoning, simulation, emergency resuscitation and postgraduate research mentorship.
Instructor & faculty roles
C-ECLS (Jeevaraksha / RGUHS); BCLS, CCLS and COLS (Indian Resuscitation Council); Basic Neonatal Resuscitation / First Golden Minute since 2010; Advanced NRP since 2011; IAP Pediatric Advanced Life Support and Basic Life Support; neurodevelopmental disorders, asthma training and practical vaccinology.
Professional leadership & memberships
IMA Shivamogga executive committee member, including service as Treasurer in 2018–19; Scientific Committee Advisor, IAP Shivamogga.
Organising Secretary for the Karnataka State Pediatric Conference and South India Pediatric Conference (2016), and National Medical College CME (2018).
Life memberships
Indian Academy of Pediatrics, Indian Medical Association, the IAP Indian Child Abuse, Neglect & Child Labour group, and Bangalore Pediatric Society.
Research interests & ongoing projects
Pediatric infectious diseases, essential newborn care, neonatal respiratory support, rural pediatrics and the social determinants of child health.
- Principal Investigator: NeoLumo investigational zinc oxide nanogel programme
- Co-investigator: profiling autoimmune encephalitis in pediatric patients
- Co-investigator: maternal and cord-blood lead levels in the rural Shimoga population
Dr Kumar’s academic record includes 74 publications across clinical research, infectious diseases and neonatal care (CV reviewed September 2026).
Editorial work & book chapters
- Editor-in-Chief, IAP Shivamogga Bulletin · 2011–2020
- Journal Watch section editor, Pediatric Infectious Disease (IAP)
- Journal Watch section editor, Karnataka Paediatric Journal
- Editorial Committee Member, Shivamogga IMA Bulletin
- Section Editor, Fluid & Electrolytes, IAP PG Teaching Module · 2018
- Section Editor, Acute Mountain Sickness, IAP-ALS Manual
Book contributions cover malaria and HIV infection in Principles of Perinatal and Pediatric HIV/AIDS (2012), microbiological aspects of pediatric community-acquired pneumonia, and acute mountain sickness in the IAP-ALS Handbook (2018).
Community care & outreach
- Monthly type 1 diabetes care programmes with Rotary International, Shimoga
- Monthly epilepsy follow-up programmes with the Sahyadri Neuro Psychiatric Association, Shivamogga
- School health screening at Sri Jnanadeepa School and preventive activities through UCAPC and Subbaiah Institute
- Rural outreach medical camps through Subbaiah Institute of Medical Sciences
Honours & interests beyond medicine
Best Teacher, Clinical Branch · 2015
Subbaiah Institute of Medical Sciences, Shivamogga.
Best Outgoing Pediatric Resident · 2009
B. J. Medical College, Pune.
A lifelong learner
Indian history, biographies and autobiographies, philately, numismatics, and travel to places of historical and cultural significance across India.
Selected scholarshipQuestions from practice.
Questions from practice.
Contributions to knowledge.
Selected publications from Dr. Kumar’s work in neonatal medicine, infectious diseases and vaccination.
2021 · New England Journal of Medicine
Congenital Langerhans-Cell Histiocytosis ↗
Anil Kallesh & Vikram S. Kumar · 385:e86
2022 · Current Pediatrics ReportsVaccine Hesitancy: Obstacles and Challenges ↗
P. M. Galagali, A. A. Kinikar & V. S. Kumar · 10:241–248
2024 · Bulletin of the National Research CentreWhen it itches, dengue switches off: a retrospective case series ↗
N. Kamble, V. S. Kumar, D. R. Rangaswamy & K. Kavatagi · 48:68
Vikkypaedia / Open medical education
Advanced learning, within reach.
Clinical knowledge should travel further than a classroom or city. Dr. Vikram S Kumar’s free, interactive modules help healthcare learners practise high-stakes pediatric decisions on mobile devices and at their own pace.
Six open modulesNewborn + child healthInteractive assessmentsFree to begin
Approach to the Sick Child
A structured approach to recognising deterioration, assessing the child and making care and referral decisions.
Pediatric Advanced Life Support 2025
Decision-based learning across respiratory failure, shock, arrhythmias and pediatric resuscitation.
Neonatal Resuscitation 2025
A pathway through newborn resuscitation and stabilisation with simulated clinical decisions.
The Metabolic Child
Case-based learning from first recognition of metabolic illness through urgent and continuing care.
OxyVent: Oxygen and Ventilation
Oxygen therapy, non-invasive support and mechanical ventilation in children, from escalation to troubleshooting.
Neonatal Jaundice & Hyperbilirubinemia
Case-based learning in neonatal hyperbilirubinemia, with phototherapy nomograms, clinical reasoning scenarios and feedback.
A clear learning pathway
Start simply. Earn mastery.
Enter your name and email, then open a module immediately. Participation certificates are available after the module’s required learning and assessment steps. They reflect self-paced educational achievement and are non-accredited; they do not confer clinical privileges.
Beyond the journal
Vikkypaedia
Medicine. Learning.
An endlessly curious mind.
Dr. Vikram Sakaleshpur Kumar’s writing on Substack brings together medical education, scientific reading, technology and history. Essays and notes extend the conversation beyond the clinic and the classroom.
Explore the notes01 / Learning & technology
AI and independent learning ↗
Reflections on what new tools mean for how we learn.
02 / Reading the evidenceCaffeine and cardiovascular research ↗
A note exploring a scientific statement and its context.
03 / History & perspectiveIndia, Elihu Yale and a university’s origins ↗
A historical thread connecting institutions, trade and empire.
Funding & recognitionRooted in Karnataka.
Rooted in Karnataka.
Moving research forward.
Support from Karnataka’s startup ecosystem helps advance our research journey and provides opportunities to present our work.
GRI · KITS
NeoLumo’s research programme is supported by GRI research funding administered through the Karnataka Innovation and Technology Society (KITS), part of Karnataka’s startup ecosystem.
ELEVATE
Sakaleshpur Shiva Shankara has been selected for the final round of ELEVATE 2026, marking a new milestone in the company’s innovation journey.
Verified organisationRegistered in Karnataka
Government of Karnataka · Registrar of FirmsFirm No. SMG-F00110-2025-26 · Registered 16 January 2026
Karnataka Startup CellKITS/SK-REGN/2026-27/17649 · Certified 13 February 2026
Start a conversationLet’s move meaningful
Let’s move meaningful
research forward.
We welcome conversations with funding agencies, research partners, clinical institutions and medical educators working to improve access to child and adolescent healthcare. Connect with Dr. Vikram S Kumar.
Emailvikramsakaleshpurkumar@gmail.com ↗Telephone+91 92414 95056 ↗
Sakaleshpur Shiva Shankara
Shivamogga, Karnataka, India