SEATTLE, Jan. 18, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- 2017 was a breakout year for the initial thrust of Signostics’ artificial intelligence-driven tool for bladder care in nursing, as parent company EchoNous announces the Uscan bladder tool saw 800% year-over-year sales growth, exceeding 20% market share in U.S. health care systems in just 15 months since launch in late 2016. Thanks to repeat orders from existing customers and several key GPO contract wins, the Uscan platform has established strong momentum in bladder care. The platform will soon be enhanced by the company’s plans to expand Uscan with a new best-in-class tool for peripheral IV and general vascular access, expected for release in early 2018. Expansion of the Uscan platform will enable EchoNous to further progress toward the company’s goal of empowering nurses with AI-based tools to help solve everyday problems in healthcare, while providing the lowest cost of ownership in the industry.
“Throughout 2017 we relentlessly disrupted an otherwise staid bladder care market badly in need of innovation; winning several GPO and health system contracts while receiving a very warm reception from customers who have opened their arms at the prospect of true long-term, value building relationships,” said Kevin Goodwin, CEO of EchoNous. “As conventional bladder scanner companies in this space have simply adapted their websites and terminology to mimic ours, they have been no match for our technology lead and progressive approach to cost of ownership for health systems and GPOs.”
Peripheral IV (PIV) access is one of the most commonly performed invasive procedures and can be challenging due to chronic illness, chemotherapy, obesity and drug abuse. By providing nurses with a PIV tool available conveniently next to a bladder tool on the same platform, that quickly delivers a clear, high-resolution image for shallow veins and at deeper depths, the company aims to increase first-time IV accuracy, patient safety and patient satisfaction.
“Nursing today seems very much in need of the right tool to enhance quick and safe IV insertion that flows into the nursing profession’s ‘see one, do one, teach one’ method of learning,” said Goodwin. “Clinicians have also encouraged us to focus on the strong opportunity to help address these challenges in pediatric medicine given the unique frequency profile of our new tool.”
In addition to strong Uscan market adoption in 2017, in September the company announced a $35 million round of investment from KKR, providing growth funding as EchoNous aims to significantly innovate in 2018, 2019 and beyond. In addition to the planned 2018 launch of a peripheral IV tool, the company is developing a third, highly advanced AI-driven ultrasound tool, aimed at large-scale gains in physical medicine practice.
“Uscan disruption has served as a catalyst for large value gains for hospitals from existing conventional bladder scanner companies who have not kept up with the technology or service demands of the modern healthcare industry,” continued Goodwin.
“We believe our entrance into the market has created greater value for hospitals in a myriad of other ways; including our observation of unprecedented moves from the former market leader, who in addition to dropping new hardware prices by 50 percent, are now offering 5 year warranty coverage to their entire installed base of systems. We estimate this retroactive warranty could mean well over a 1 million months of free warranty coverage for existing customers and proves that our arrival into this bladder care space has forced more value to customers from conventional bladder scanner companies compared to their previously unconscionable cost of ownership.
“A new and rising standard of care is absolutely possible through the delivery of intelligent clinical assessment tools for use by healthcare professionals at all points of care. The Uscan for bladder, and soon IV placement, is just the beginning of our journey to deliver an expanding family of high performing ultrasound devices, linked together with a singular AI-station, to address the most pressing needs of patients and providers.”
About EchoNous & Signostics
Headquartered in Seattle, Washington, EchoNous, a KKR portfolio company, is applying the emerging field of artificial intelligence (AI) with the extreme miniaturization of ultrasound to solve common everyday problems in health care. CEO and industry innovator Kevin Goodwin and EVP, COO & CIO Niko Pagoulatos, PhD, a prolific engineering leader, together direct the company based on more than 45 years of experience and new category creation in the ultrasound industry. For more information, visit www.echonous.com.
Signostics Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of EchoNous, a Delaware-based corporation. Signostics is applying emerging fields of artificial intelligence, including deep and machine learning, with the extreme miniaturization of ultrasound to solve common everyday problems in health care. The company’s Uscan device simply and precisely measures bladder volume and bladder wall thickness, saving time and money and leading to improved patient satisfaction. Signostics has regulatory approvals in the U.S., Australia, Canada, Europe, Singapore and Japan, and exports to countries around the world. For more information, visit www.signosticsmedical.com.
Signostics and Uscan are Trademarks of Signostics Limited.
Caution: Federal (USA) law restricts this device to sale by or on the order of a physician.
Media Contact:
Jaime Quick
ChangeUp Advisors for EchoNous
jq@changeupadvisors.com, 206.229.5183
A photo accompanying this announcement is available at http://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/a0db68db-ffc6-4d9e-ac87-8c103a8fedd7