iCare and Thirona have entered a strategic partnership that will see Thirona’s RetCAD artificial intelligence software implemented in iCare’s solutions for eye disease screening in Europe. The partnership underpins both companies’ technological leadership in the field; Thirona specialises in artificial intelligence for medical image analysis, while iCare supplies ophthalmic tools for the diagnosis of glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy, and age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
iCare is part of Revenio, a global supplier of ophthalmological devices and software solutions. In March 2021, Revenio acquired Oculo, an Australian developed platform designed to share clinical imaging, referrals, and other clinical correspondence securely and instantly between health care professionals.
With a clinically validated software system instantly analysing every patient fundus examination, iCare expects initial screening procedures will be more efficient and at least as accurate as when conducted by human experts. Additionally, simplified visualisation of the examination analysis with heat maps will support eye care providers in validating the AI results and aid patient engagement in the prevention of severe eyesight problems and blindness.
“Combining high quality of iCare’s fundus images with RetCAD’s reliability of automated analysis, together we can provide eye care practitioners with a powerful trustworthy solution, enabling them (to screen) more patients faster. Seamless integration of RetCAD into the iCare platform enables an optimal user experience, with test results instantly presented in a form of simple visualisation, meaningful for the patient,” said Mark van Grinsven, head of the retina division at Thirona.
RetCAD is already distributed worldwide through integration partnerships with major fundus camera vendors such as Topcon, Canon, Tomey and Nidek, as well as medical solutions providers such as Delft Imaging.
“By joining forces with iCare we can bring innovation to the mainstream markets faster. iCare is not just a distribution channel for us. Partnerships based on a shared vision and mutual trust are very centric to Thirona’s strategy, so we are happy to have iCare as our strategic partner,” said Diederik Sakkers, business development manager RetCAD at Thirona.
