MicroClear's Ultra-Widefield Laser Scanning Ophthalmic Imaging System Pioneers a New Era in Retinal Diagnostics with National Key R&D Program Backing

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Nowadays, changes in lifestyle and poor eye health have posed a significant threat to visual health. Visual health spans a person's entire life cycle and seriously affects their quality of life. Therefore, the state has always paid great attention to eye health and related industries.

As China's population aging intensifies, eye health issues have become increasingly severe, with 30 million people in China blind and 250 million suffering from poor vision. How to better protect people's eye health and improve quality of life has risen to the level of a national strategy and major national issue.

From screening, diagnosis to precise treatment throughout the entire life cycle of visual health, the product quality and technical strength of the vast majority of domestically produced products still have a certain gap compared to imported ones. Encouragingly, as a representative of high-end domestic brands in eye health, Suzhou Microclear Medical Instruments Co., Ltd. (referred to as Microclear Medical) is committed to independently researching and developing advanced ophthalmic diagnostic and therapeutic equipment, fully mastering independent research and development from mass production of complete machines to core components, with autonomous control over the core supply chain.

After a decade of development, Microclear Medical has successively launched a series of screening products serving public eye health in the field of ophthalmic diagnosis and treatment, such as vision testing and cataract screening. It has also introduced several globally leading ultra-widefield confocal fundus imaging technology products, including color fundus photography, retinal and choroidal angiography, multimodal combined imaging diagnosis, and other series of products. Today, Microclear's technology covers the entire ecosystem of eye health from fundus diagnosis to treatment. Among them, the ultra-widefield laser camera boasts multiple globally leading technologies and quickly grew into a top industry brand after its launch.。

Recently, the Ministry of Science and Technology announced the "National Key R&D Program 2022 Annual Key Special Projects." Among them, Microclear Medical, as the leading and chief scientist unit, submitted the "Laser Scanning Ultra-Wide Angle Confocal Fundus Imaging System" for project approval, which has been approved. The project is jointly supported by multiple prestigious institutions including Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Wenzhou Medical University Eye Hospital, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital, Institute of Optics and Electronics at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and Southeast University.

The National Key R&D Program is the highest-level scientific and technological project at the national level, which integrates the former National Key Basic Research Development Program (The 973 Program, the National High-Tech Research and Development Plan (863 Program), the National Key Technology Support Program, and 13 other special projects have been integrated into the National Key R&D Program. The National Key R&D Program provides continuous support and leadership for major social issues related to national welfare and people's livelihood, as well as strategic and forward-looking scientific issues critical to industrial core competitiveness, overall independent innovation capability, and national security.

The project team undertaking the National Key R&D Program represents the highest level of technological strength in this field.ThisMeans that in the field of ophthalmic imaging, Microclear MedicalAsLeading team, technology and quality are at the international leading level.

At present, there are many pain points and difficulties in the field of ophthalmic imaging in China, such as the relative scarcity of ophthalmologists, heavy reliance on imported equipment, high costs, and the heavy burden on both doctors and patients.

The development of science and technology is gradually solving these problems. For example, with technological innovation, Microclear Medical has evolved from "preventing and treating blindness" to "one photo of the fundus, early knowledge of health." The demand for fundus examination has also expanded to systemic diseases associated with fundus changes, such as hypertension, diabetes, arteriosclerosis, and cardiovascular diseases.

In the fundus imaging market, traditional optical fundus cameras still dominate, with annual global shipments exceeding ten thousand units. However, optical cameras have certain limitations in fundus imaging.

For example, the LED optical illumination of optical cameras has poor penetration, low patient comfort, and cannot provide clear imaging for patients with turbid refractive media; the minimum pupil size for optical cameras is generally 3.3mm or above, making it impossible to capture clear images for elderly patients with small pupils; traditional optical cameras have a 45-degree imaging field of view and cannot image the peripheral fundus, which can easily lead to missed diagnoses.

Compared with traditional optical imaging methods, Microclear Medical has launched an ultra-wide-angle laser camera based on confocal laser scanning technology. It is reported that confocal laser technology scans point by point, meaning every "point" is a focal point, allowing for the observation of more subtle retinal lesions as well as capillary function and morphology. It can perform in-depth, detailed fundus examinations for various diseases such as diabetes, glaucoma, retinal vascular lesions, and macular degeneration.

Based on confocal laser technology, Microclear Medical's ultra-wide-angle laser camera addresses the pain points of traditional optical cameras. Its single-shot intraocular imaging angle can reach up to 170° (field of view 115°), and two-image stitching provides over 240° coverage. It requires no pupil dilation, no darkroom, and delivers clear images even in cases of opaque refractive media. Additionally, it can record the entire diagnosis and treatment process, from color photos and preoperative videos to postoperative videos.

In addition, Microclear Medical's unique "20x lossless optical zoom" technology allows even inexperienced doctors to switch the imaging range with a single click while quickly focusing, eliminating the hassle of repeatedly changing lenses in the traditional way—use the wide angle to view the periphery and adjust the focus to see details.

(Microclear Medical's unique lossless zoom technology)

According to the introduction,Microclear Medical is the first Chinese company to apply "ultra-widefield confocal laser technology" to ophthalmic imaging equipment.ItsThe launch of ultra-wide-angle laser color photography, ultra-wide-angle laser angiography, and other ophthalmic imaging products has brokenCompletedForeign Monopoly。

Based on the characteristics of product innovation, clinical advantages, and urgent market demand, Microclear Medical's ultra-widefield confocal laser camera may gradually replace traditional optical cameras, becoming the first choice for the next generation of fundus camera users. It is expected to comprehensively rewrite the market and landscape of fundus cameras.

It is worth mentioning that Microclear Medical has also collaborated with several renowned ophthalmic hospitals in China to classify and annotate various ophthalmic cases such as glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy, successfully launchingThe First "Fundus Disease Risk Assessment System" Based on Ultra-Widefield Laser Camera. This system can achieve batch auxiliary analysis of multiple fundus diseases and risk assessment of fundus diseases, which helps to better popularize the advantages of laser photography, more effectively assist grassroots ophthalmologists in screening and teaching work, and shorten the learning curve for interpreting laser images.

(Multi-disease Risk Assessment System for Fundus Diseases)

Previously, Microclear Medical has achieved global leadership in ultra-small pupil and ultra-high diopter imaging. For instance, in animal experiments, Microclear Medical’s products have realized laser imaging with a 1.5mm small pupil, and when paired with customized lenses, can easily obtain clear fundus imaging of small animals like guinea pigs. It also effortlessly achieves dual angiography imaging for small animals. Meanwhile, the innovative ultra-widefield confocal laser technology developed by Microclear Medical brings more possibilities to clinical research at the cellular level. A 5° field of view can clearly display photoreceptor contours and micro-arterial blood flow velocity, comprehensively revealing details of retinal microstructures and deeply capturing cellular-level pathological changes.

(Internationally leading technology for measuring blood flow velocity in the human retina & photoreceptor cells)

Based on strong technical capabilities, Microclear Medical has achieved a full range of product coverage for grassroots screening and myopia prevention and control. The "Mobile Clinic" solution created by Microclear Medical includes refractive, anterior segment, and fundus screening, which can easily achieve batch record-keeping, rapid screening, ultra-long standby time, portable relocation, and remote image reading, providing a convenient and efficient solution for grassroots free clinics and large-scale screening.

In addition, Microclear Medical independently developed intelligent hardware based on the Android platform, enabling the miniaturization and digitization of products such as fundus cameras, digital slit lamps, and vision screening devices. This has established a comprehensive system for Chinese people, including "grassroots screening - remote diagnosis - health tracking - graded referral," which is widely used in both clinical and research fields.

Microclear Medical stated: In the process of productizing new technologies for ophthalmic diagnosis, it will continue to actively respond to the needs of the times. While deepening the field of ophthalmic examination, it will also make advanced arrangements in the high-end ophthalmic treatment sector, aiming to build a full life cycle eye health service platform.

As the first domestically produced and globally leading ultra-widefield confocal laser camera/angiography system, Microclear Medical's ultra-widefield series is a truly non-mydriatic, large-field-of-view, small-pupil imaging camera capable of achieving multifocal multimodal imaging to dynamic preview recording.

With its powerful functions and superior quality, Microclear Medical's ultra-wide-angle series products have achieved over 200 installations across China and more than 40 installations for overseas users within just over a year of being on the market.

Among them, well-known hospitals both in China and abroad, such as Peking Union Medical College Hospital, Anzhen Hospital, Children's Hospital, Zhejiang Provincial People's Hospital, Hunan Province Women and Children's Hospital, Second Hospital Affiliated to Tianjin Medical University, Swiss University Hospital, and Konkuk University Hospital in South Korea, have adopted Microclear Medical's ultra-wide-angle product series. The products have received unanimous recognition from clinical experts.

Zhu Siquan from Beijing Anzhen HospitalRepresentation"The confocal laser ultra-wide-field imaging system of Microclear Medical can perform imaging within a 150-degree range under a small pupil of 1.5mm, and achieve full fundus photography of 240 degrees through four-image stitching. Especially for cataract doctors, many cataract patients have entered the near-mature stage or have developed secondary nuclear sclerosis or above; in the past, it was basically impossible to clearly examine the fundus condition. With this system, we can now see the entire fundus very clearly, providing a very advantageous means for preoperative fundus examination of cataract patients."

With the AI technology in the system, it can assist in analyzing 19 kinds of fundus diseases with an accuracy of over 90%. For doctors or examiners in general hospitals, the learning cycle is significantly shortened, providing excellent training results for grassroots hospitals or general ophthalmologists."

Chen Youxin from Peking Union Medical College HospitalRepresentation"Scientific research is a cornerstone of our clinical work, especially in research-oriented and teaching hospitals like ours. Scientific research is crucial, involving various scientific experiments. Among these, we use fundus cameras to examine the fundus conditions of animals such as monkeys, rabbits, and rats. However, traditional fundus cameras can examine monkeys and rabbits but have poor imaging effects on rat fundus. Microclear Medical, through confocal technology and optical design, has developed a high-quality innovative imaging system that clearly examines the rat fundus. After long-term application, the usage effect has been very satisfactory, with no pupil constriction in animals and very high imaging quality, providing significant assistance to scientific research."

In addition, the smallest imaging angle of Microclear Medical can reach 5 degrees. In fact, when well-focused, cellular structures such as cone cells can be observed. This technology is not only excellent in the animal world but also highly valuable for human application research. Currently, through Microclear Medical’s products, it is possible to observe living cells and measure blood flow velocity, which provides significant support for both scientific research and clinical applications.

Microclear Medical is a high-tech enterprise specializing in the research, development, production, and sales of advanced ophthalmic imaging and intelligent devices. Its self-developed series of products, including ultra-widefield confocal laser retinal color photography and angiography, fundus cameras, and vision screening devices, have obtained medical device registration certificates in China, the United States, the European Union, and other regions. The company has been certified under international standards such as ISO9001, serving over 2,000 large hospitals, exporting to more than 60 countries and regions including Europe and the United States, and holding over 100 domestic and international patents. It has established an ecosystem of advanced ophthalmic imaging and intelligent screening products and is gradually building its global channel sales system, establishing a premium brand for Chinese manufacturing among customers. Microclear's leading technical team mostly originates from the Chinese Academy of Sciences system, mastering cutting-edge technologies ranging from astronomy to medical imaging, while its marketing team consists of industry elites who have completed the preliminary deployment of global marketing channels.