McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine faculty member George Michalopoulos, MD, PhD (pictured), professor and chairman of the Department of Pathology at the University of Pittsburgh and pathologist at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC), is pleased about a recent partnership launched between GE Healthcare and UPMC. The collaboration will transition healthcare’s last manual diagnostic process into the digital age.
The digital solutions will shape a new age of patient care to a science that has relied on glass slides and microscopes for over 125 years. The digital platform will enable clinicians to share images virtually, interpret results using advanced algorithms, and reduce costs associated with diagnosis. The benefit to patients could include a reduction in medical errors, improved turnaround time for lab results, and integrating pathology information as part of his or her electronic medical record.
“Digital pathology provides a platform for the creation of new tools that will help pathologists screen large numbers of slides in search of a small nest of cells or a few bacteria to quickly and accurately diagnose disease,” said Dr. Michalopoulos.
The idea of digital pathology took shape when GE researchers developed a prototype that overcame what appeared to be insurmountable barriers for a mainstream product: image quality and speed of scanning slides. Building on early developments in GE’s Global Research Center, the endeavor will unite UPMC’s pioneering developments in digital pathology and GE’s portfolio technology, including advanced optics, image capture algorithms, and next-generation imaging platforms, to create a viable solution for high-volume clinical use.
Illustration: McGowan Institute for Regenerative Medicine.
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UPMC/University of Pittsburgh Schools of the Health Sciences Media Relations (06/05/08)
The New York Times (06/05/08)
Washington Post (06/05/08)
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette (06/05/08)
Pittsburgh Tribune-Review (06/05/08)