The Lung Guidance and AutoAS are newly incorporated features launched by GE HealthCare for the Vscan Air™ handheld ultrasound system. Both capabilities are designed to assist clinicians in completing their point-of-care assessment of those hospitalized patients.
The new features cater to patients with cardiac and respiratory complaints. They enable clinicians to acquire consistent lung ultrasound images and to assess moderate-to-severe aortic stenosis (AS).
Cardiac or pulmonary diseases may be present in breathless patients. Sometimes they have both conditions adding to their symptoms. But clinicians are often working under time constraints and without immediate access to specialist imaging.
To help tackle this challenge, GE HealthCare is expanding its Vscan Air cardiopulmonary AI solutions. Caption AI™ for cardiac scan guidance and Caption Interpretation™ Auto EF support are now part of the current portfolio. Pulmonary and valve disease assessments are now enhanced with Lung Guidance and AutoAS.
Together, these technologies aim to provide useful clinical information earlier. They also support consistent assessments and help clinicians determine appropriate care pathways.
“Clinicians at the point of care are often working with limited time and incomplete information, and a symptom like shortness of breath rarely announces if it’s coming from the heart, the lungs, or both,” said Karley Yoder, Chief Executive Officer, Ultrasound Solutions, Advanced Imaging Solutions, GE HealthCare. “Lung Guidance and AutoAS are designed to shorten the distance between the initial physical assessment and a clear next step, putting AI-enabled tools in the hands of the clinician who is already with the patient.”
Supporting Consistent Lung Ultrasound Imaging
Lung Guidance provides real-time scanning assistance to help clinicians position the ultrasound probe correctly. It guides users towards anatomical landmarks across the standard eight-zone lung protocol.
The technology identifies several lung landmarks. These include the pleural line, A-lines, rib shadows, diaphragm, and abdomen.
Additionally, AutoCapture automatically captures clips of ultrasound images when pre-specified image quality and landmark requirements are met. Clinicians can also use the Save Best Clip function to save the best image from each scanning view .
This feature is still useful if the AutoCapture conditions are not met. Lung Guidance also helps with B-line detection, scoring and reporting. These capabilities help clinicians organize findings from lung ultrasound studies.
Non-expert users were able to consistently obtain diagnostic quality lung ultrasound examinations during validation testing. They succeeded 95.2 percent of the time, compared with 96.8 percent for expert users. Such a descriptive evaluation demonstrates the potential of the technology to support consistent image acquisition.
AI-Assisted Aortic Stenosis Evaluation
AutoAS is an automated AI-assisted visual assessment of moderate to severe aortic stenosis. It analyzes conventional 2D cardiac images acquired with Vscan Air SL.
Two or more compatible echocardiographic views are needed for the system. These include parasternal long axis (PLAX), parasternal short axis at the aortic valve (PSAX-AV) and apical five chamber (AP5).
AutoAS then analyzes the images, giving an estimate on whether the findings suggest moderate-to-severe AS. It also provides a confidence score of how confident the algorithm is.
Consequently, clinicians can access additional assessment support when formal echocardiography is delayed. The technology was trained and validated against a reference panel of expert cardiologists. According to GE HealthCare, it can reduce variability in missed AS cases compared with visual interpretation alone.
Expanding GE HealthCare’s Point-of-Care AI Portfolio
Lung Guidance and AutoAS strengthen Vscan Air’s existing AI capabilities. These include Caption AI and Auto Bladder Volume.
Additionally, GE HealthCare is expanding AI solutions across its portfolio of point-of-care ultrasound devices. Its offerings include the Venue™ family of systems, the LOGIQ™ e family and Vscan Air.
These solutions are designed for both large healthcare organizations and individual physicians. They also encourage broader access to ultrasound technology in a range of clinical settings.
Both Lung Guidance and AutoAS have received 510(k) clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. They also carry CE marking and are available through Vscan Air Innovation Packages in the United States and selected countries.
Current customers with a valid subscription or license to the Innovation Package or Vscan Air will be able to get these updates by the end of November 2026. Products and solutions may vary by country and system model.
Explore Health Tech Insiders for the latest medical innovations and reliable strategic insights driving the future of technology-driven healthcare transformation.
News Source: Businesswire.com
