Healthy.io explained
Healthy.io is a health care company offering remote clinical testing and services enabled by smartphone technology.[2] [3] Launched in 2013 by founder and CEO Yonatan Adiri,[2] the company uses smartphones to enable at-home diagnostics testing for the detection of signs of kidney disease, urinary tract infections, and pregnancy complications.[4] [5] Its digital wound management solution is used by medical personnel to measure and track wounds using a smartphone.[6]
History
Healthy.io developed smartphone-enabled products to aid in the early diagnosis of chronic kidney disease, urinary tract infections and prenatal care.[4] [7] Healthy.io’s urinalysis product became the first smartphone-based system to receive Food and Drug Administration clearance as a Class II clinical diagnostic device in 2018.[4] As part of the FDA approval process of the test to monitor for kidney disease, clinical trials showed the technology had equivalent accuracy to a professional laboratory. A peer-reviewed study in 2019 found the home-based urinalysis for early detection of kidney disease increased screening rates in patients with hypertension; 89% preferred testing at home.[8] A separate 2019 peer-reviewed study of home urinalysis self-testing amongst diabetic patients determined compliance rates were 72%.[9] Doctors in Britain used it in 2020 to monitor patients remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic.[10] [11] The company had raised $95 million in funding as of June 2020.[12] In June 2020 the company acquired Silicon Valley competitor Inui Health for $9 million.[13] [14]
Products
Healthy.io's digital urinalysis products provide patients with at-home clinical-grade urinalysis.[3] [4] Users scan the urinalysis dipstick using a smartphone app.[15] The technology then uses machine learning and computer vision techniques to correct the color - taking into account lighting conditions and other variables - to provide an analysis.[1] [4] The company's urinalysis products can be used to detect kidney damage, urinary tract infections, and pregnancy complications such as elevated protein levels.[16] [3] In May 2021, a specially-modified version of the company's kidney health test was selected to accompany the Axiom Mission 1 to the International Space Station in early 2022, allowing astronauts in space to measure their kidney function in real time.[17] Its wound management product uses a smartphone app, calibration stickers, and web portal to measure and track chronic wounds over time. The app builds a 3D model of the wound for a more accurate assessment. As of 2020, the wound management product was being used by nurses in the U.S. and Britain.[18] [19]
Notes and References
- News: Kuchler . Hannah . The Israeli start-up's app-based urine tests point to wider diagnostic potential and savings for health services . 10 August 2020 . Financial Times . 30 March 2020.
- News: Farr . Christina . Healthy.io, maker of a 'medical selfie,' is part of the new generation of Israeli health-tech companies . 10 August 2020 . CNBC . 22 June 2020.
- News: Pictures of health; Smartphone diagnostics . 10 August 2020 . The Economist . 11 March 2017.
- News: Kalman . Matthew . A medical app uses your smartphone's camera to carry out lab tests at home . 12 August 2020 . MIT Technology Review . 24 April 2019.
- News: Ioannou . Lori . How an Israeli start-up turned the cellphone into a testing lab for kidney disease . 13 August 2020 . CNBC . 2 February 2019.
- News: Kuchler . Hannah . The Israeli start-up's app-based urine tests point to wider diagnostic potential and savings for health services . 10 August 2020 . Financial Times . 30 March 2020.
- News: Blakeley . Rhys . App lets patients test at home for kidney disease . 6 October 2020 . The Times . 5 October 2020.
- Leddy . Julia . Green . Jamie A. . Yule . Christina . Molecavage . Juliann . Coresh . Josef . Chang . Alex R. . Improving proteinuria screening with mailed smartphone urinalysis testing in previously unscreened patients with hypertension: a randomized controlled trial . BMC Nephrology . 18 April 2019 . 20 . 1 . 132 . 10.1186/s12882-019-1324-z . 30999886 . 6471866 . free .
- Shore . Judith . Green . Michelle . Hardy . Andrew . Livesey . Deborah . The compliance and cost-effectiveness of smartphone urinalysis albumin screening for people with diabetes in England . Expert Review of Pharmacoeconomics & Outcomes Research . 20 August 2019 . 20 . 4 . 387–395 . 10.1080/14737167.2019.1650024 . 31354065 . 198967347 . 10 September 2020.
- News: Ranscombe . Peter . How diabetes management is adapting amid the COVID-19 pandemic . 12 August 2020 . The Lancet . 8 July 2020.
- News: Dimitropoulos . Stav . Can't go to the doctor? You already own a powerful medical device . 12 August 2020 . Fast Company . 27 March 2020.
- News: Israel's Healthy.io raises $60 mln, gets FDA ok for urine test . 3 September 2020 . Reuters . 12 September 2019.
- News: Farr . Christina . Healthy.io, Israeli maker of smartphone urinalysis tech, buys its largest U.S. rival . 11 August 2020 . CNBC . 26 June 2020.
- News: Jerusalem Post Staff . Israeli company Healthy.io buys largest American competitor, Inui Health . 10 September 2020 . Jerusalem Post . 28 June 2020.
- News: Tozzi . John . Urine-Testing Startup Healthy.io Raises $60 Million to Expand . 10 August 2020 . Bloomberg . 11 September 2019.
- Smartphone-Based Device Approved for Diagnostics . Biomedical Instrumentation & Technology . September–October 2018 . 52 . 5 . 334 . 10.2345/0899-8205-52.5.332 . 195664205 . free .
- News: Benmeleh . Yaacov . Israeli Mission to Test Tech for Next Generation of Space Travel . 9 May 2021 . Bloomberg . 5 May 2021.
- News: 2020 CNBC Disruptors: 19. Healthy.io . 19 August 2020 . CNBC.com . CNBC . 16 June 2020.
- News: Lovett . Laura . Healthy.io launches wound care tech in US . 5 October 2020 . MobiHealth News . 15 January 2020.
