Intelligent Ultrasound reaches milestone in GE HealthCare partnership

Intelligent Ultrasound announced a significant milestone in its partnership with GE HealthCare on Friday.

The AIM-traded company said its ‘ScanNav AI’ software, which powers GE’s ‘SonoLystlive’ software, was now a standard feature on the latest versions of the Voluson Expert Series portfolio of ultrasound machines, namely the Expert 22 and Expert 20.

SonoLystlive, driven by Intelligent Ultrasound’s ScanNav AI, was described by the company as a leap forward in ultrasound image recognition technology.

It automatically captures real-time ultrasound images as clinicians scan mid-trimester patients.

By following practice guidelines from the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology (ISUOG), the artificial intelligence (AI) software identifies the anatomy, captures the necessary images, and verifies compliance with required views.

The automation significantly reduces the need for manual image freezing, annotation and storage, substantially reducing keystrokes and examination time for sonographers.

Intelligent Ultrasound said the development further solidified its longstanding partnership with GE HealthCare, which includes incorporating its AI technology as an optional add-on in GE’s SonoLyst X/IR software on the Voluson SWIFT ultrasound machine.

While the advancement is promising, the company noted that the transition of SonoLystlive from an optional upgrade, with its associated higher rewards and risks of uptake, to a standard feature on GE’s ultrasound machines could impact its 2024 clinical AI revenue forecasts.

However, it said it was too early to provide a comprehensive assessment of the impact, with further analysis necessary as the technology was integrated into the market.

“We are delighted that, by incorporating SonoLystlive as a standard feature onto its Voluson Expert 22 and 20 ultrasound machine GE HealthCare is leading the way in using AI software to improve obstetric workflows for the benefit of clinicians and patients,” said chief executive officer Stuart Gall.

“The Voluson Expert Series is a market-leading ultrasound machine in the global women’s healthcare obstetrics market, and SonoLystlive is a fantastic example of how AI software can help save scanning time whilst de-stressing the scanning environment for the sonographer.

“We remain excited that our novel ‘classroom-to-clinic’ approach is making clinical diagnostic ultrasound easier to learn and simpler to use.”

At 1025 GMT, shares in Intelligent Ultrasound Group were up 3.68% at 9.85p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.