Early Diagnosis of Pneumonia Critical to Stopping World’s #1 Infectious Killer of Children
Vancouver, BC (PRWEB) November 13, 2014 -- On the sixth annual World Pneumonia Day, LionsGate Technologies (LGTmedical) joined the Global Coalition Against Child Pneumonia in calling for urgent action to end preventable child deaths caused by pneumonia by 2030. Every day, over 2,500 children under the age of five die of pneumonia; that’s almost 1,000,000 children who are killed by this infection every year and the majority of them live in the developing world.
A key factor in saving the lives of children with pneumonia is early detection.
“Two signs that children might have pneumonia are if they have a heart rate greater than 100 beats per minute as well as arterial hypoxemia or blood oxygen deficiency. These are also signs of other severe infections, such as sepsis,” said Dr. Mark Ansermino, a pediatric anesthesiologist at BC Children’s Hospital and Chief Medical Officer of LGTmedical.
“Both of these vital signs – pulse rate and blood oxygen level or SpO2 - can be quickly and easily measured with a non-invasive fingertip pulse oximeter. An oximeter can also detect an important specific indicator of severe pneumonia called hypoxemia, which is low blood oxygen saturation level. Hypoxemia is the single greatest risk factor for pneumonia-related death.”
“We’re also developing a pneumonia diagnostic kit that includes vital signs monitors, such as a pulse oximeter, and triage models that community healthcare workers can use to quickly diagnose and assess childhood pneumonia,” he added. Pneumonia diagnostic kit video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdMG_krbIlM
Saving lives in the developing world is why Dr. Ansermino and his colleagues at the University of British Columbia’s Electrical and Computer Engineering in Medicine research group developed the Phone Oximeter™ prototype, a pulse oximeter sensor powered by a smartphone, in 2010.
LGTmedical commercialized the Phone Oximeter, now known as the Kenek Edge™ pulse oximeter. http://www.lgtmedical.com/kenekedge/ It was launched into the US recreational market in June 2014 to generate revenue that will support distribution of the urgently needed medical device in the developing world.
“Our goal is to provide ultra-low cost vital signs monitoring to everyone, everywhere,” said Tom Walker, President and CEO of LGTmedical. “Our universal interface, Kenek Core™, enables standard medical sensors to easily connect to supported mobile devices through the audio port. This means the sensor is driven entirely by the app in the smartphone or tablet. Because there are no batteries, processors, or wireless configuration required, these app-devices can be used anywhere - in remote villages or in low-resource communities around the world.”
Pulse oximetry is LGTmedical’s initial application to be commercialized because of its significant impact on saving lives in the developing world, specifically children with pneumonia, people with sepsis, women with preeclampsia, and critically ill newborns.
About World Pneumonia Day
World Pneumonia Day was established in 2009 to raise awareness about pneumonia; to promote interventions to protect against, prevent, and treat pneumonia; and to generate action in combatting pneumonia. For more information about World Pneumonia Day, facts and figures and activities, please visit http://www.worldpneumoniaday.org.
About LionsGate Technologies, Inc. (LGTmedical)
LGTmedical is a spin-off company of the University of British Columbia (UBC), the Child & Family Research Institute, and BC Children’s Hospital in Vancouver, BC, Canada. It has leveraged the synergies of award-winning interdisciplinary research, global foundations, and business expertise to establish the innovative core technologies, infrastructure, and partnerships and become a leading mHealth company. LGTmedical is focused on product and channel development to achieve the most scalable and clinically impactful global mobile health solutions. The company is ISO 13485:2003 certified. http://www.lgtmedical.com
Phone Oximeter, Kenek, Kenek Edge, and Kenek Core are trademarks of LionsGate Technologies, Inc.
Kenek Edge is a mobile application (app) and sensor device that can help people gain access to useful information when and where they need it. The information is for sports, recreational, and aviation use only. Kenek Edge is not a medical device.
Pamela Clarke, LionsGate Technologies (LGTmedical), http://lgtmedical.com, +1 6049838627, [email protected]
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