Aug 27 2013
Aïmago SA, a Swiss medical device company and developer of the Aïmago EasyLDI Perfusion Camera, announces that a core patent for the real-time and non-invasive skin perfusion visualization has been granted in the US.
As a result, Aïmago has completed a technology transfer process with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne (EPFL), including the license of patent applications on the integration of Laser Doppler Imaging (LDI) with ICG / fluorescence imaging.
This further strengthens Aïmago's position as technology leader in clinically relevant perfusion imaging to assess both skin perfusion and deep tissue / organ perfusion within one device.
Granted Patent Protects LDI Ready for Effortless Clinical Use
The recently granted patent (US 8,480,579 B2) protects Aïmago's EasyLDI Perfusion Camera's ability to make LDI real-time by replacing the traditionally used and slow scanning systems with Aïmago's innovative, fast and full-field imaging approach. Aïmago's patented technology enables EasyLDI to be compact and provide highly intuitive and real-time images for use by surgeons, physicians and nurses.
Combining the Best of Both Worlds
EasyLDI is based on LDI and the most advanced solution for skin perfusion assessment across plastic and reconstructive surgery, burns and advanced wound care, as well as peripheral vascular and extremity applications. It is non-invasive and allows for immediate and continuous imaging much like using a digital camera – both inside and outside the operating room.
In parallel, ICG / fluorescence based perfusion imaging is widely available and an established standard in ophthalmology and neurosurgery. Contrary to LDI, ICG requires the injection of a dye and thus cannot be used continuously, but it has the ability to visualize blood flow in large vessels and inner organs.
While the principle of ICG / fluorescent based perfusion imaging is in public domain, the now licensed patent applications seek to protect the combination of LDI with ICG / fluorescence imaging into one single imaging device. These patent applications, filed in 2007, are currently in review phases in both the United States and Germany.
Prof. Theo Lasser, head of the EPFL Biomedical Optics Lab and co-founder of Aïmago, has experience with ICG and comments: "We are satisfied to see that Aïmago now has access to the entire IP package. From a clinical perspective, the implemented LDI modality covers the majority of applications related to skin perfusion imaging, while ICG / fluorescence imaging opens the door to deeper tissues and organs – all through one single, highly intuitive instrument."