Digital Health Tools

Roche Receives First FDA Breakthrough Status for AI-Driven Companion Diagnostic in Lung Cancer >> 🔘 Roche’s VENTANA TROP2 device is the first AI-powered companion diagnostic (CDx) to receive FDA Breakthrough Device Designation for non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC), combining immunohistochemistry (IHC), digital pathology, and AI to reach new levels of diagnostic precision 🔘 It uses a digital pathology algorithm (developed with AstraZeneca) to analyze whole-slide images and generate a quantitative TROP2 score, helping identify which patients might benefit from treatment 🔘 This AI-enhanced scoring could accelerate access to DATROWAY®, a TROP2-targeted antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) from AstraZeneca and Daiichi Sankyo, for patients with advanced NSCLC lacking actionable genomic alterations 🔘 The device incorporates Quantitative Continuous Scoring (QCS) to independently detect tumor cells and compute a Normalised Membrane Ratio (NMR), determining if a tumor is TROP2-positive 🔘 While AI handles the heavy-lifting, qualified pathologists still play a key role in reviewing staining, image quality, and providing clinical oversight 🔘 This is the first FDA Breakthrough designation granted to a computational pathology-based CDx, pointing to a future where AI and pathologists work hand-in-hand 👇 Source articles plus image credit in comments #DigitalHealth #AI #Pharma

A searing analysis published today by Peterson Health Technology Institute (PHTI) that I expect will create ripples across the industry finds that "digital diabetes management solutions ... do not deliver meaningful clinical benefits, and they increase healthcare spending relative to usual care." Tools assessed for the analysis include those from companies such as Omada Health, Vida Health, Glooko, Onduo by Verily and Teladoc's Livongo.

The Future of #Healthcare: Revolutionizing Medicine with #VR and #AI The intersection of virtual reality (VR) and artificial intelligence (AI) marks a pivotal shift in healthcare. These innovations promise to enhance medical training, transform patient care, and revolutionize surgical procedures. Alvin Wang Graylin, Global VP at HTC Vive and author of "Our Next Reality," highlights the potential of VR and AI to deliver a more immersive, effective healthcare experience.   Key Insights from Alvin Graylin: VR's Impact: 3D Visualization: Enables precise insights into vital organs during procedures. Training Excellence: Offers realistic simulations for practicing complex surgeries, boosting confidence and skill. Patient Understanding: Facilitates a deeper grasp of conditions and treatments through interactive experiences. Pain and Mental Health: Provides distraction techniques and potential treatments for mental health issues.   AI's Role: Enhanced Collaboration: Aids practitioners in diagnosis, drug design, and surgical planning. Real-time Assistance: Offers guidance during procedures through medical imagery analysis. Predictive Insights: Analyzes data to personalize medicine and foresee health risks. Ethical and Privacy Considerations: The enthusiasm for VR and AI in healthcare must be balanced with ethical considerations, including patient privacy and data security. Addressing these concerns is vital for responsible technology use.   Join the Discussion: How do you perceive the integration of VR and AI in healthcare? What challenges and opportunities do you envision? Share your views! Doug Hohulin, thank you for the introduction to Alvin. #DigitalHealth #AI #VR #HealthcareInnovation #EthicalAI #PatientCare #MedicalTraining #AIinHealthcare

Telehealth only leads to over-utilization of care. It does not actually replace in-person visits, it only costs us more money. 🤨 Sound right? That concern has shaped the policy conversation for years. It began due to a widely cited study demonstrating DTC telehealth increased total utilization. It became a benchmark for both caution and debate, especially in Medicare policy debates (can read here: https://lnkd.in/erZ4qYXV) Btw, that study was from 2017. Yet we still had that story ingrained and was hard to shake despite some research showing different results. Well in a new study, we have new evidence to may get rid of this belief once and for all. This study analyzed 100% of Medicare Fee-For-Service (FFS) claims from 2019 to 2024 to assess how telehealth has affected outpatient visit volume. It focused on evaluation and management (E&M) visits across three specialties with different levels of telehealth use: 🔹 Low: Orthopedic surgery 🔹 🔹 Medium: Primary care 🔹 🔹 🔹 High: Behavioral health Here’s what stood out: 1️⃣ Telehealth stabilized: After its initial spike, telehealth found its place. In 2024, it made up 38.4% of behavioral health visits, 6.3% in primary care, and just 1.2% in orthopedics. 2️⃣ More telehealth didn’t mean more visits. Total E&M visits were actually lower in specialties that used telehealth more: 📉 Behavioral health: 4.1% relative decline 📉 Primary care: 7.2% relative decline (Compared to orthopedics as a baseline) 3️⃣ Telehealth was substitutive, *not* additive: This is a key difference. Virtual care mostly replaced in-person visits rather than creating new demand. It met patients where they were without overwhelming the system. 4️⃣ Overall utilization stayed steady: Despite new care models, visit rates held consistent. Telehealth expanded flexibility, but capacity constraints and clinical workflows still shaped how care was delivered. These findings challenge long-held assumptions (I can't believe that it has been 8 years). We now have strong, early data suggesting that broad telehealth adoption doesn’t drive overutilization in Medicare. That’s a meaningful shift. It is time to move beyond outdated fears and into more thoughtful, evidence-based policy. As someone who’s worked in both emergency medicine and telehealth, I’ve seen how virtual care can meet real needs without excess. I hope we continue building systems that reflect that. Not just in theory, but in how we support access, quality, and sustainability in practice. 🧠 Curious to hear your thoughts especially if you're working in policy, digital health, or any corner of the system where these questions come up daily. 🔗 Read the full study here: https://lnkd.in/eyam4jHF Note: this is a preprint so might be more to add post peer review #digitalhealth #telemedicine #telehealth

Healthcare isn’t just happening in clinics anymore—it’s happening on your wrist. Here’s the scoop: the convergence of wearable devices and AI is no longer just a Silicon Valley experiment—it’s transforming patient care as we know it. Here’s what’s happening: → Continuous Health Monitoring AI-powered wearables are now tracking vital signs around the clock. This real-time monitoring means early detection of health issues—catching concerns before they escalate (source: Current Research in Health Sciences). → Significant Market Growth The wearable AI market is projected to grow from $51.9 billion in 2023 to a massive $160.4 billion by 2030, and the wearable medical device market is expected to hit $196.5 billion by 2030 (sources: GlobeNewswire, Devpulse). Healthcare is going digital, fast. → Improved Patient Outcomes Patients using wearables for chronic disease management have seen a 30% reduction in hospital readmissions. The result? Proactive care and better health outcomes (source: GlobeNewswire). → Rising Consumer Adoption Currently, 46% of Americans are tracking their health with wearable devices, and this number is climbing as technology advances and becomes even more user-friendly (source: RockHealth). But there’s more: The rise of these tools brings big questions about data privacy and integration with existing healthcare systems. The bottom line? Wearable tech and AI are paving the way for a healthcare future that’s personal, proactive, and precise. Are we ready for a world where our health data follows us everywhere? Let’s talk about what this means for the future of healthcare.

Partnered with Ezra Mehlman at Health Enterprise Partners and Kevin O'Leary at Health Tech Nerds to offer guidance for health plan and system leaders seeking to scale digital health models amidst sharp declines in VC investment. The reality: We’re well past the virtual care boom of the pandemic era. Shifting towards a "digital front door" was short-lived, and future models will strike a balance between high-tech (virtual) and high-touch (provider engagement). An improved patient experience is key to this, as well. At Morgan Health, we're seeing that different populations want to engage with virtual care in different ways. Equally important, digital health strategies must be supported by the right talent, vendor partners and internal data infrastructure. We outlined eight key imperatives in Healthcare Financial Management Association (HFMA): 1. Enhanced vendor due diligence is now mission-critical 2. Negotiating leverage has shifted to buyers 3. Premium tech talent can be acquired at discount rates 4. In house innovation requires sustainable development approaches 5. Strategic corporate VC can fill funding gaps 6. Market conditions enable strategic acquisitions at reasonable valuations 7. Point solution rationalization allows for streamlined digital portfolios 8. AI implementation must focus on practical applications with clear ROI Article can be accessed below. Last note - Ezra Mehlman is a true talent and was the driving force behind this work. He has an amazing ability to blend smart investing with critical thinking and teaching. https://lnkd.in/egiScjwA

🫀 In a recent interview, I explained how AI is changing the way we see the heart—literally. Because when it comes to your heart, every second—and every pixel—matters.  From CT to MRI to Ultrasound. At Philips, we’re using AI to make heart scans faster, clearer, and more comfortable for patients. Our AI-powered tools are already helping doctors spot heart problems earlier—sometimes even before symptoms appear. Here’s how: 🔹 CT 5300 – Built for AI-based image reconstruction, delivering clearer images with less radiation. 🔹 Spectral CT 7500 – Enables 15-minute Spectral scans that can rule out multiple CV conditions at once. 🔹 Precise Cardiac – AI that compensates for heart motion, improving diagnostic confidence. 🔹 SmartSpeed MRI – Uses Dual AI engines to sharpen image quality and cut scan times. 🔹 Compact Ultrasound 5500CV – Portable and powerful, it reduces scan time by up to 50% and improves consistency. And we’re not stopping there. Our collaboration with NVIDIA will build a powerful MRI foundational model to push diagnostic accuracy even further, helping us generate new MRI applications. More here->  https://lnkd.in/eZKcX8WE #Cardiac #AI

How Do We Evaluate Digital Tools and AI? That’s an area where we need much more discussion. I’ve been a critic of standards that require nearly 100% accuracy compared to usual care. That’s because usual care is not 100% accurate. Lately though, I’ve been wondering if we are asking the wrong questions when it comes to health tech. Should we be comparing AI and other tech tools to doctors — or to no care at all? Here’s what we should consider: With provider shortages, many people are left waiting weeks, if not months, for appointments — or, worse, they receive no care at all. While chatbots have limitations and aren’t replacements for a doctor’s nuanced expertise, they can offer valuable support when traditional care is out of reach. Imagine someone struggling with postpartum depression who can’t see a mental health professional soon; a chatbot could provide resources and a listening ear, even helping them understand when to seek urgent care. For a patient managing diabetes, a chatbot could assist with insulin dose calculations when their provider isn’t available. Or consider someone dealing with anxiety who can access techniques to help manage symptoms in real time, providing relief that may otherwise have been delayed. Of course, it depends on the condition and the situation. But let’s not dismiss it outright. By reframing our expectations, we can see digital tools that fill critical gaps, especially in underserved areas. They might help with triage, answer basic health questions, and even provide peace of mind in moments when real-life providers aren’t available. As we continue to improve these technologies, the goal shouldn’t be perfection but rather how well they serve when options are limited. What do you think — should our measure of success be based on their performance against doctors or against the reality of going without care altogether? #HealthcareTech #AI #DigitalHealth #AccessToCare

Hollywood-quality voice AI is now free, and the healthcare implications are massive. Sesame AI just open-sourced their breakthrough voice model, CSM-1B. This is the tech behind their viral voice assistant Maya, and now anyone can use studio-quality voice generation with no paywalls, no restrictions, and full commercial rights. As someone who's built and scaled multiple healthtech products, I can see three major ways this could transform the industry: 1. Patient experience will shift from touch to voice Many patients — particularly older adults and those with limited tech literacy — struggle with apps. Voice-first experiences can simplify medication reminders and symptom tracking, removing barriers to healthcare access in local languages. 2. Multilingual AI care becomes viable at scale With models like CSM-1B, even early-stage startups can create regional-language health coaches in weeks, not years. This means healthtech solutions can finally reach Tier 2 and 3 cities without billion-dollar investments. 3. Voice AI creates a false trust paradox Research shows patients trust fluent, natural-sounding AI even when information is incorrect. In healthcare, that's not just a UX issue — it's a safety risk. Founders must implement robust guardrails and clear human handoffs. This open-source release represents a fundamental shift in who can build voice-enabled healthcare. It's infrastructure democratization that will enable the next wave of innovations. But as with any powerful technology, there are two sides to this coin. While CSM-1B could dramatically expand healthcare access, we must also be vigilant about misuse. Without proper safeguards, we risk creating convincing misinformation that patients trust simply because it sounds human. The opportunity is massive, but so is our responsibility to implement this technology ethically. What voice AI applications do you see transforming healthcare in the next year? #ai #healthcare #innovation #startups

Recent findings reported by MHealth Intelligence reveal that remote care has significantly increased medication adherence among Type 2 diabetes patients. This improvement is primarily due to the convenience and continuous support provided by remote monitoring technologies, which encourage patients to stay consistent with their medication regimes. The use of digital tools not only facilitates easier communication between patients and healthcare providers but also provides real-time data and alerts that help manage the condition effectively. This proactive approach in diabetes management is crucial for preventing complications and enhancing overall patient health. As technology evolves, remote care could become a cornerstone in managing chronic diseases more effectively. Key Takeaways: Increased Adherence 💊 - Remote care technologies have improved medication adherence rates. Continuous Support 📞 - Ongoing remote monitoring offers patients consistent support. Effective Communication 🗨️ - Enhanced communication channels between patients and providers. Real-Time Data 📉 - Access to real-time health data helps in better disease management. Proactive Health Management 🩺 - Prevents complications and improves the quality of life for diabetes patients.