GE Healthcare Secures $44 Million Grant from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to Advance AI-Powered Ultrasound for Maternal and Pediatric Care
GE Healthcare
Digital Solution Provider
Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation
Grant Foundation
AI-driven automatic assessment tools for ultrasound imaging can provide clinical decision-making information to medical staff, assisting them in obstetric and pulmonary screening ultrasound scans, and improving maternal-fetal care and pediatric pulmonary health diagnosis and treatment levels.
Funding from the Bill＆Melinda Gates Foundation will be used to expand the accessibility of ultrasound examinations in low- and middle-income countries. Ultrasound is a crucial tool for disease screening and diagnosis, with applications ranging from maternal health to the management of respiratory diseases. The use of ultrasound is often limited by the experience and operation skills of the medical staff using the equipment. This funding will help bring Caption Health's leading artificial intelligence technology to more scenarios and devices, assisting healthcare workers in utilizing ultrasound equipment and more intelligent tools effectively, thereby enabling more people to access higher-quality medical services.
GE Healthcare Receives $44 Million Funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to Develop AI-Driven Ultrasound Imaging Auto-Assessment Tools
Maternal and child mortality is a major global healthcare concern. In 2020, nearly 800 women died each day from preventable causes related to pregnancy and childbirth, with approximately 95% of maternal deaths occurring in low- and middle-income countries.1In 2019, 2.4 million infants worldwide died within the first month after birth. Ultrasound technology is a routine method applied during pregnancy and childbirth to determine fetal health markers and various pregnancy conditions, such as gestational age, fetal presentation, multiple pregnancies (multiple fetuses), fetal viability, umbilical cord blood flow, and ectopic pregnancy.
Pneumonia is one of the most common causes of death for children under five years old globally.2Since symptoms of pneumonia can develop suddenly, early diagnosis is crucial for the effective treatment of pneumonia and the prevention of complications. Bedside lung ultrasound can provide physicians with a view of the entire lung, is easy to repeat, and enables more accurate diagnosis of pneumonia.3。
In February 2023, GE Healthcare acquired Caption Health, a leading company in medical artificial intelligence. Currently, Caption Health has launched an FDA-approved AI-assisted cardiac ultrasound diagnostic software. With the support of this funding, Caption Health will develop various pulmonary and obstetric ultrasound algorithms, conduct clinical validation, and submit applications to regulatory authorities.
1. World Health Organization. Maternal Mortality Ratio. Published on February 22, 2023. Available at: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/maternal-mortality. Accessed on: August 22, 2023.
2. World Health Organization. Pneumonia. WHO. URL: https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/pneumonia. Accessed on: June 10, 2022.
3. Systematic review and meta-analysis of the use of ultrasound compared to radiographic methods in the diagnosis of pneumonia, Saeed Ali Alzahrani et al. Crit Ultrasound J. 2017; 9: 6.
