Children aren't always able to communicate how they are feeling very well to doctors. But advances in smart diagnostic tools are making it possible for doctors to diagnose problems that children may not even know they have. That's why Pennsylvania and D.C.-based Rijuven wanted to adapt their CardioSleeve, which makes stethoscope able to do echocardiograms, into something usable for pediatrics.
With the new approval of the FDA, doctors can use the CardioSleeve to check for heart murmers, arrthymia and other heart problems in infants and children using the company's i2Dtx platform.
"It all started with a group of doctors in the same room who wanted to do something good, that's how it was born," said Rijuvan CMO Lucius Polk. "The CardioSleeve augments stethoscopes so that doctors can detect symptoms of possible heart problems, screen for it if they need an EKG or screen out the possibility they need one at all."
The CardioSleeve is made up of sensors that can pick up the sound carried by the stethoscope and send the data to the cloud where it can be analyzed by the Rijuven platform. It's the combination of hardware and software that is unique according to Polk. Additional improvements to both the CardioSleeve and the software make it extra useful in pediatric care. Now it can detect heart rates up to 180 beats per minutes, even if the patient is noisy or moving around in ways that might confuse the detection software.
"Extending the use of the CardioSleeve was relatively easy since it's the same backend system," Polk said. "It fits into our whole suite of portable products."
The CardioSleeve is only one of the i2Dtx platform products, which includes an otoscope, scale, thermometer and blood pressure cuff among other options for mixing and matching. The point is to make the process of measuring and diagnosing vital statistics as easy and mobile as possible. The information can be viewed in real time and sent to other doctors for consults as necessary.
"We aim at consolidation and miniaturization of multiple devices," said Justin Bass, Rijuven's chief strategist. "You previously were required go to a facility for these tests. The other benefit is the analysis you can do in the cloud."
The FDA approval will likely boost Rijuven's revenue, but the company is "always raising capital," Polk said, adding that they have been lucky with a generous board of advisors providing angel and seed investment. The company has raised a little less than $3.5 million overall. And expanding into pediatrics with the CardioSleeve will bring more clients on board, especially those looking for ways to soothe anxious parents.
"We're empowering parents to communicate better with pediatricians about their children," Polk said. "That's why data collection tools are so important. Now we can treat a child that can't say how it feels, but it can be done at home and at a lower cost."
