In order to test the Butterfly IQ, a portable device that makes it possible to perform ultrasound when connected to a iPhone, the vascular surgeon John Martin ended up proving that the device worked well in a way … um, not pleasant.
Martin had been experiencing a peculiar discomfort in his throat, so he decided to test the small device connected to his iPhone exactly where he was in pain, as he told the vehicle MIT Technology Review.
[…] black and gray images appeared quickly. Martin is not a cancer specialist. But he knew that the three-inch dark mass he saw was not meant to be there. “I am a doctor enough to know that I was in trouble,” he said. It was squamous cell cancer.
The Butterfly IQ, the device that helped him identify cancer, is the first solid-state ultrasound machine to hit the market in the United States. To perform ultrasound, the device sends sounds to the body and then captures echoes.
Because it is a device that can be used only with the help of an iPhone, where images appear in real time, the manufacturer Butterfly Network hopes that the device can be used without even any medical training.
The company says it hopes to combine the device with artificial intelligence software that could help a novice operate the probe, collect the right images and interpret them. Next year, he believes, his software will allow users to automatically calculate how much blood the heart is pumping or to detect problems like aortic aneurysms.
Martin contributes to the hopes of the company, saying that the device can even be taken to the homes of patients and, perhaps, it can help parents discover, before it is too late, a fracture if their children get hurt.
Looking at this as just an ultrasound device is like looking at an iPhone and saying that it’s just a phone. If anyone can access a view of the inside of their body and can interpret it, it becomes much more than an ultrasound device.
In fact, Apple has always tried to improve its health initiatives more and more, especially in relation to heart rate monitoring, blood pressure, among other things. Therefore, it is also a win for Apple that developers are thinking about different health solutions dedicated to their products.
The Butterfly iQ will start shipping in 2018 and will cost “less than $ 2,000”.
via 9to5Mac
