In this partnership, Philips and Mayo Clinic plan to harness the power of AI and the expertise of Mayo Clinic physicians. They hope to increase operational efficiency by shortening complex MRI exams and improving workflows for radiologists.
According to a news release, in addition to CT scans, MRI can prove useful when treating congenital heart disease or disease affecting the heart muscle. However, high costs and limited availability often hinder access to high-quality MRI, Philips says.
“From the patient perspective, MRI scans can be stressful. A complex cardiac MRI exam can take over an hour, which is often challenging for patients who suffer from claustrophobia inside the bore of the scanner, find it difficult to lie still or are unable to hold their breath for the required time,” said Ioannis Panagiotelis, business leader of MRI at Philips. “By applying AI at every stage of a cardiac MRI exam, we intend to expand access and greatly improve the patient experience, increase departmental efficiency, and deliver the detailed diagnostic information needed for optimal patient outcomes.”
Under the collaboration, Philips aims to leverage Mayo Clinic’s proprietary AI technology in combination with its own. This combination could help reduce MRI scan times and improve the efficiency needed to relieve the burden on healthcare professionals. With AI, Philips and Mayo Clinic say less experienced radiographers could potentially perform complex cardiac MRI exams.
Additionally, the research partnership intends to look at the potential of lower-field-strength MRI solutions developed by Philips. The Dutch medtech giant designed these solutions to enable MRI installations in a broader range of applications. They also provide safer scanning options for individuals with implants sensitive to high magnetic fields.
Philips inks another AI collaboration
This marks the third AI-focused partnership for Philips in the span of just about a week.
On Nov. 25, the company said it teamed up with Icometrix to deploy an AI-driven brain scan solution. The companies aim to provide an end-to-end solution for acquiring, reading and reporting the results of MRI brain scans.
They hope to optimize the diagnosis and treatment monitoring of neurological conditions, including Alzheimer’s and multiple sclerosis (MS).
The next day, Philips announced the expansion of its strategic collaboration with Amazon Web Services (AWS). The collaboration offers Philips’ integrated diagnostics portfolio in the cloud. That includes radiology, digital pathology, cardiology and AI advanced visualization solutions. Philips and AWS aim to unify diagnostic workflows, improving access to critical insights and driving better outcomes across clinical specialties.
