Patient access to most advanced four-dimensional respiratory imaging

MedTech News: Respiratory specialists and general practitioners will soon be able to order highly visual reports of patients’ lung function based upon four-dimensional scans, following successful completion of pilot programs by 4DMedical in collaboration with I-MED Radiology Network, Australia’s largest diagnostic imaging provider.

Commencing in December, clinicians and specialists based in in south-eastern Melbourne will be able to refer patients to I-MED’s imaging clinic. Patients will be able to access state-of-the-art radiology scans generated using 4DMedical’s unique XV Technology, which clinical pilot evaluation studies have proven provides improved insight into lung health.

4DMedical’s Managing Director and CEO, Dr Andreas Fouras, said “People living with or concerned about respiratory disease will have access to the world’s most advanced four-dimensional quantification and visualisation of their lungs, enabling them and their referring doctor to gain insights into lung function with the highest sensitivity.”

“This expansion of our capability at our Casey clinic means people in Berwick and south-eastern Melbourne can access the latest technology in respiratory imaging from December,” added I-MED’s General Manager Government Relations and External Partnerships, Mark Simpson. “This service enables superior information to be provided to patients presenting with lung disorders, and will help referring medical practitioners plan appropriate treatment plans.”

4DMedical recently confirmed that COVID-afflicted patients had been scanned as part of a comprehensive program of clinical pilot studies carried out in Melbourne, validating the application of this revolutionary technology in the residual physiological effects of COVID-19 where established imaging methods and lung function tests may not detect evidence of this condition.

“Using XV Technology, clinicians can detect areas of high and low ventilation with pinpoint accuracy across all parts of the lung, in all phases of the breath”, said Dr Ray Casciari, a pulmonary physician highly experienced in interpreting four-dimensional scans, based at the St Joseph Hospital in Orange, California.

“The resulting ventilation report provides clinicians with a colour-coded and dynamic visualisation of the patient’s lung, enhanced with four-dimensional animation,” Dr Casciari added. “This report is extremely clear and easily understood, and I can use this to inform my own analysis and to show the effect of COVID to the patient.”

Diseases assessed during pilot programs included post-COVID, asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), bronchiectasis, sarcoidosis and silicosis. 4DMedical’s XV Technology has proved particularly useful as a surveillance tool, monitoring the evolving condition of patients’ lungs and response to therapeutic interventions such as courses of pharmaceuticals.

This commercial rollout is the first in a 4DMedical revenue generation strategy that will be rapidly expanded to include sites in Brisbane and Wagga early in 2022.