An Essex hospital has introduced cutting-edge AI-powered technology to enable clinicians to deliver life-changing treatment more quickly.
e-Stroke, developed by UK company Brainomix, is now available at Colchester Hospital, part of East Suffolk and North Essex NHS Foundation Trust.
The software analyses images of the brain and blood vessels to automatically flag blockages.
The stroke team can instantaneously share these scans with specialist centres over a secure system, speeding up the diagnosis and treatment process.
The technology will ensure that patients requiring specialist thrombectomy treatment can be transferred as quickly as possible.
Colchester Hospital stroke lead, Dr Ramachandran Sivakumar, said: “Speed is vital in the treatment of strokes and a thrombectomy should be carried out as early as possible to increase the patient’s chances of a good outcome.
“Introducing this software will allow our clinicians to work closely with regional colleagues to review scans promptly, in turn ensuring patients receive the best possible care.”
Consultant radiologist Dr Nagendra Thayur, added: “By allowing us to share images quickly and efficiently, e-Stroke will help ensure appropriate patients who need time-sensitive thrombectomies can be rapidly transferred to a specialist centre for the procedure.”
e-Stroke consists of three modules: e-ASPECTS, e-CTA and e-CTP.
e-ASPECTS and e-CTA can detect Large Vessel Occlusions (LVOs) which account for between 24 per cent and 46 per cent of acute ischemic strokes.
Riaz Rahman, VP Healthcare Global with Brainomix, said: “Working with the team from Colchester has been a delight.
“The entire end-to-end process of installing the AI technology was successfully completed in a matter of weeks, meaning the real work of optimising the referral pathway for those patients eligible for life-saving treatment can begin in earnest.
“The clinical teams from ESNEFT have truly embraced the idea that more timely clinical information available instantly at their fingertips will help to optimise their own clinical expertise and knowledge to deliver the best patient care.”
Brainomix launched as a spin-out from the University of Oxford in 2010.
