Arterys Secures $7 Million Series A Funding and Partners with GE Healthcare to Advance Precision Diagnosis of Cardiovascular Diseases

According to MedCity News, Arterys, a medical imaging company that leverages cloud computing technology for the precise diagnosis of cardiovascular diseases, recently completed a $7 million Series A financing round. The round was led by GE Healthcare, the Stanford-StartX Fund, and Norwich Ventures, with participation from Emergent Medical Partners, Asset Management Ventures, AME Cloud Ventures, and Morado Ventures. This brings the company’s total funding to $12 million. Arterys stated that the proceeds will be used to further expand the market reach of its visualized and quantitative medical imaging solutions. In the United States, cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death, consistently ranking first among all causes of mortality. Echocardiography is the primary method for diagnosing cardiovascular diseases; however, studies have shown that it lacks accuracy in measuring blood flow. Apart from this, there are currently no other non-invasive diagnostic methods available for cardiovascular diseases.

The software developed by Arterys connects to MRI scanners and leverages cloud computing technology to enable non-invasive, precise quantitative analysis of rapid blood flow. After a ten-minute MRI scan, patient data is transmitted to a HIPAA-compliant cloud server, where it is analyzed via a web browser to provide accurate diagnostic results, effectively addressing the issue of limited accuracy in echocardiography.

Arterys announced that its Arterys diagnostic system would be installed on thousands of GE Healthcare’s MRI scanners worldwide, and would be used in conjunction with the 7D imaging technology ViosWorks, developed by GE Healthcare, in the fall of 2016.


Note: ViosWorks, a 7D imaging technology, is a novel magnetic resonance scanning technique developed by GE Healthcare that captures and renders cardiac images across seven dimensions. These seven dimensions comprise three spatial dimensions, one temporal dimension, and three velocity dimensions. ViosWorks acquires data from all seven dimensions, enabling image visualization within 8 minutes, whereas conventional MRI typically requires 45 minutes to an hour. Furthermore, ViosWorks can present real-time video of the entire thoracic cavity, including blood flow, ventricular contraction, acute bleeding sites, and scarring.

Palo Alto Health Sciences Secures $1.97 Million in Funding to Address Hyperventilation Caused by Panic Disorder

Palo Alto Health Sciences has developed a tablet-based mobile breathing assistance system for patients with anxiety and panic disorders, securing $1.97 million in funding. This round was led by Aphelion Capital, with participation from several angel investors. To date, Palo Alto Health Sciences has raised a total of $7.5 million.

The Freespira respiratory assistance system, developed by the company, has received FDA approval. Designed to help patients with panic disorder and anxiety who suffer from abnormally high respiratory rates, the system trains users to improve their breathing patterns, enabling them to achieve normal respiration and alleviate panic symptoms. The Freespira system connects a miniature sensor to a companion app on a tablet, allowing it to measure the user’s respiratory rate and the amount of carbon dioxide exhaled with each breath. Detailed audio and video instructions within the app guide users through breathing exercises twice daily for 17 minutes per session, with significant symptom improvement typically observed after four weeks.

Compiled by Wang Jinfan