Grant funding boosts EMVision’s rollout of emu brain scanner for regional stroke care

• EMVision to evaluate use of emu brain scanner in regional settings through $3 million CRC-P grant
• Company to lead a collaboration with the Australian Stroke Alliance, Titan Pre-hospital Innovation, and South Australian Rural Support Service
• Project aims to accelerate diagnosis and management of stroke patients in regional emergency departments

Special Report: EMVision Medical Devices’ portable stroke detection tool, the emu brain scanner, has received a further development boost through a $3 million Cooperative Research Centres Projects (CRC-P) grant to evaluate its use in regional settings.

The first grant instalment of $453,566 has been received under the CRC-P program, which is run by the Federal Department of Industry, Science and Resources to support short-term, industry-led collaborative research projects.

Under the grant, EMVision Medical Devices (ASX: EMV) will lead a collaboration with the Australian Stroke Alliance (ASA), Titan Pre-hospital Innovation, and South Australian Rural Support Service.

The collaboration aims to accelerate diagnosis and management of stroke patients in regional emergency departments, improving outcomes for underserved rural Australians.

The project will test a stroke care workflow using a telehealth-enabled emu brain scanner.

EMVision’s portable brain scanner is designed to rapidly detect and differentiate types of strokes at the bedside.

Results of an earlier multi-centre pre-validation study showed emu could identify a type of stroke – bleed or clot – with high diagnostic accuracy. A pivotal validation study is now well underway to support regulatory clearance for the emu brain scanner.

EMVision said the endpoints for this project were typical of a diagnostic clinical utility study, assessing how diagnostic information from emu can speed patient management decision making, knowing that each minute saved in stroke care is linked to better patient outcomes.

First evidence of emu in clinical practice

The study will be the first to demonstrate a real-world benefit of EMVision’s emu point-of-care brain scanner in clinical use, forming part of the company’s evidence generation strategy to support device adoption.

Planning of the CRC-P funded clinical benefit study of the emu brain scanner in regional South Australian hospitals is underway.

The workflow incorporating emu point-of-care brain scanners in regional emergency departments is being refined by the collaborative project team, including experts in stroke neurology and regional systems of care.

EMVision said candidate investigational sites have been earmarked and are under detailed review before final selection with the study due to start mid-next year.

The study will include regional South Australian hospitals and is designed to deliver quantifiable evidence of the emu scanner’s clinical use.

Under the CRC-P grant agreement, EMVision must maintain satisfactory project progress and compliance to receive future instalments.

Progress reports will be submitted quarterly, with the project anticipated to complete before September 30, 2027.

Further study of EMVision’s devices underway

EMVision announced last month it had begun a study assessing its second generation device the First Responder brain scanner in Melbourne Mobile Stroke Unit (MSU) ambulances in collaboration with the ASA, Ambulance Victoria and the Royal Melbourne Hospital.

The backpack-sized First Responder is a lighter version of emu and has already been put through its paces in a proof-of-concept study with the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) and ASA.

The company is also progressing a pivotal multi-site validation trial for emu, to support US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance.

Trial sites include Mayo Clinic, Mount Sinai, UTHealth and UCLA Health in the US, as well as Royal Melbourne Hospital, and Sydney’s Liverpool Hospital.

EMVision recently undertook a $12 million-plus equity raising, with the funds to advance the validation and commercialisation of its two portable stroke detection tools.

This article was developed in collaboration with EMVision, a Stockhead advertiser at the time of publishing.

This article does not constitute financial product advice. You should consider obtaining independent advice before making any financial decisions.