A Vancouver company has launched a line of ultrasound scanners that combine artificial intelligence and a pocket size to make medical ultrasounds accessible to medical professionals whether they’re in an office, an ambulance or a remote refugee camp.
“When you compare our solution to traditional point-of-care solutions, it is basically 20 per cent or less of the cost of those machines and our scanners are much more portable, they fit in your pocket and they’re wireless,” said Clarius CEO Laurent Pelissier. “And they are driven by artificial intelligence.
“Not only are traditional systems big, but they cost $25,000 to $50,000 and they’re not easy to implement, especially in private practice,” he said. Dr. Kevin Zorn, associate professor of urology, minimally invasive urological-oncologist and Director of Robotic Surgery at the Research Center of the University Hospital of Montreal, has been using a Clarius portable ultrasound scanner for the past two years performing more than 1,000 ultrasound exams on his patients.
In describing patient care before the arrival of the handheld scanner technology, Zorn outlined a process that started with the patient’s initial examination, followed by a request for an ultrasound, a wait for that appointment, a scan carried out by a technician, followed by a radiologist’s report. The report would go back to Zorn’s office where the patient would have to be seen again for the results and a treatment plan.
“To me it’s a no brainer,” he said. “We buy our stethoscopes for $200 to $500 for some of the higher end ones. A bladder scanner, a vital tool that you find at most nursing stations and in emergency rooms, costs $10,000 to $12,000 CDN.”