Vicky Demas, CEO of identifeye Health, talks about the company's approach to probe the retina with its proprietary device and companion algorithm. The reitna, she believes, holds the clues to overall health.
Eyenuk recently received FDA clearance to use the Topcon NW400 retinal camera with its EyeArt AI system, which automatically detects diabetic retinopathy. The company said this FDA clearance makes its system the only AI system that is FDA-cleared for use with multiple retinal cameras produced by different manufacturers.
As technology advances, AI-powered tools will increasingly reduce the administrative burdens on healthcare providers.
Eyenuk, a company that makes technology for eye screenings, raised $26 million in a Series A funding round, bringing its total funding to more than $43 million. Research shows that the company's AI system is more accurate in detecting diabetic retinopathy than a clinical examination from a general ophthalmologist or a retina specialist.
The agency set a national payment amount for AI-based screenings for diabetic retinopathy in its 2022 Medicare Physician Fee Schedule final rule. It would also allow the screenings to count toward quality measures.
AbbVie will take the lead on commercializing Regenxbio’s gene therapy in wet AMD and diabetic retinopathy. It’s AbbVie’s second major gene therapy deal this year, coming months after it committed $90 million to preclinical-stage Capsida Biotherapeutics.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that diabetes-related blindness costs can total more than $500 million per year, but eye care screenings are one of the easiest and most cost-effective ways to detect diabetes early and get patients the treatment they need.
The future looks bright for the integrated specialty pharmacy model – for health systems, providers, and most importantly, for patients.
The organizations have announced that the first real-world clinical use of the algorithm is happening at the Aravind Eye Hospital in Madurai, India.
The company's technology for screening diabetic retinopathy was granted "Breakthrough Device" designation and is able to provide a clinical decision, instead of simply a recommendation to the physician.
The marketing clearance follows the FDA's decision to approve a "breakthrough device" designation for IDx-DR, accelerating the review process for the product based on its ability to address an unmet medical need.
The system has an artificial intelligence algorithm that evaluates the images coming from the camera and determines whether or not there's diabetic retinopathy in them,” explained IDx Founder and President Michael Abràmoff. “So it makes a clinical decision, without someone like me being involved — it's fully autonomous.”
The progress in artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping patient care, across various dimensions, from facilitating faster discharge to curating treatment plans and suggesting lifestyle changes.