Merge Healthcare has announced mobile technology that enables patients and healthcare professionals to view digital medical images such as CT, MRI, X-ray and other images on an Apple iPhone or iPod touch. A demonstration of Merge Mobile for the iPhone( is available free of charge from the iPhone App Store.
Merge Mobile is breakthrough technology intended to help health organizations and clinicians improve quality of care, reduce costs and improve responsiveness to patients. Today, radiologists and physicians have access to patient medical images from computers connected to their practice management or PAC (picture archiving and communications) systems. Applications(a) built upon Merge Mobile technology will enable radiologists to view emergency cases directly from their iPhone or iPod touch, consult with colleagues and, when necessary, forward critical findings directly and securely to a patient’s referring physician.
“Merge Healthcare will usher in a new era of mobile healthcare by bringing advanced medical imaging information to the fingertips of physicians,” said Justin Dearborn, Merge Healthcare Chief Executive Officer, in the press release. “Merge Mobile leverages the rapid convergence of mobile and medical technology development to empower new approaches in healthcare delivery and coordination.”
Merge Mobile technology will enable the development of applications to retrieve CT, MRI, X-ray and other images wirelessly, and to perform standard radiologic manipulations to guide decision-making, much like computer-based solutions such as PACS. Few solutions of this kind exist today, and most experience download delays associated with medical imaging’s large data sets. Merge Mobile incorporates advanced remote rendering techniques, including multi-planar reconstruction (MPR), which eliminate downloading of large data quantities to the mobile device and enable near-immediate access to images. Features include remote stack viewing using the iPhone multi-touch interface, scroll, contrast adjustment, zoom and pan. A secure communication protocol addresses privacy.
Merge Healthcare provides sample images and data via a demonstration server with the free Merge Mobile download (iTunes App Store link) here.
The doctors are very impressed when I can show them my CT pictures on my iPhone now. This sounds very innovative. What doctor will not get one as a business expense for Christmas now. A great stocking stuffer!
Again, on the iPhone first I assume.
This could save countless lives. When my mother-in-law suffered a stroke, the neurologist was literally on the golf course. With technology from companies like Merge, coupled with the iPhone and faster mobile communications, it means that critical information can be viewed and shared, and decisions can be made in near real-time. When lives are on the line, seconds count. It means that a physician on the golf course or out at dinner could immediately view and analyze an X-ray, a CT or MRI scan, and give directions on what to do.
One thing to keep in mind is how sensitive medical and patient information will be encrypted while in transit from the hospital, clinic, radiology facility, lab or doctor’s office to comply with the HIPAA regulations. HIPAA and patient privacy are pretty serious issues. It’s another bump in the road, but it can be done.
Next time Steve Ballmer or Rob Enderle say that the iPhone is a toy, show them this article. It would be a fitting irony that the iPhone would save either of their lives should a medical emergency ever demand this.
To those of you who sniffed at this article as not being sexy enough, think again. Someday, your life might depend on a doctor and his or her iPhone.
Although this is not the first PACs program for the iPhone, all programs that enable access to this information is helpful. However, here is an important caveat to this type of software — the iPhone screen does not have enough resolution nor size to warrant over the air diagnosis by a radiologist. It is good for quick checks, but until the screen has a high enough pixel density, this type of program will largely be for demonstration purposes.
Its now only a matter of time…
Have you ever heard of zooming in? If the image sent is in high res then the image viewed, when zoomed in, will be high res.
I’m no M.D. but I view high res microscope photos on my iPod touch and make very expensive decisions based on what I see.
Right you are!
The resolution on the iPhone and touch is as high as a very good monitor. So using zoom on them will give as many details as using a desk-top setup.
I downloaded this app days ago. Very interesting, although the interface is poor. I am sure it will improve over time. Merge is a company selling PACS systems (servers which mange medical images), so to use the product obviously requires the hospital or imaging center to purchase one of their servers. No other PACS system can send anything to their iPhone app. Hopefully this product with spur on other vendors to include similar functionality. Unfortunately, most major vendors are extremely slow and resistant. The vendor I use in my radiology practice (McKesson) took almost two years before supporting Explorer 7 for their web-based viewer. Only a smaller vendor will be motivated to be cutting edge. With PACS system costing several millions of dollars, no one will be switching any time soon just for iPhone access.
Merge is trying everything to make money – they even have a imaging study “review” service that has Indian radiologist look at studies from the US and provide a written “preview” for a US-based radiologist to sign and pretend to have read the study, skirting licensing and legal issues. Not exactly a company interested in the well-being of the patient, but rather making a buck anywhere they can.
Somewhat related:
OSIRIX is free open-source software to view CT’s and MRI’s on your Mac or iPod.
Uhm, 163pixels per inch. That’s more pixel density than any monitor that I know of. Someone needs to get out more.
Check out Osirix for iPhone. A new medical imaging viewer based on a free Mac-only open source server. Much more interesting than this.