IrisVision co-founder and CEO Ammad Khan today introduced a new company, Radius XR, to coincide with the opening of the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) 2022 meeting in Chicago. Radius XR builds on the therapeutic legacy of IrisVision by introducing diagnostic capability to the proprietary VR/AR assistive device.
After the CES Award-winning 2017 launch of IrisVision, which has helped thousands of legally blind individuals see again, the company sought to leverage its core technology to benefit the eyecare industry by creating a patient-guided exam process that makes it easier and more affordable to diagnose a range of vision problems that are pervasive in the U.S. More than 32 million Americans aged 18+ are affected by vision loss, according to the IPUMS National Health Interview Survey1.
Using a single Radius XR headset, patients can self-perform a range of vision tests that are clinically equivalent to gold standard exams. The exams currently performed with the Radius XR testing platform are Visual Field, Visual Acuity, Contrast Sensitivity, Amsler Grid, and Color Scheme. Development is ongoing.
The shift to patient-guided testing enhances eyecare practice workflow and enables a single technician to administer several test sessions concurrently, doubling patient capacity.
The fashion-forward design of Radius XR is a significant leap forward in wearable devices, with the look and feel of a pair of fashionable sunglasses. Radius XR is the industry’s lightest wearable device, weighing just under 6 oz., and features all-day battery life.
The small, lightweight design overcomes the challenges of expensive and bulky legacy devices that force patients to sit in uncomfortable positions for testing. Exams can be conducted beyond exam lanes, allowing a patient’s exam in nontraditional spaces like waiting rooms, remote offices, and lobbies. With Radius XR, opportunities for greater accessibility and care are boundless.
A breakthrough feature of the Radius XR platform is the immersive educational media library that can be tailored to each patient. This content is configured by each practice to display at an appropriate time during the exam experience automatically, eliminating the repetitive, time-consuming task of providing patients with educational information about their vision challenges while ensuring relevant information is consistently presented.
The platform includes a Business Suite of management tools that streamline patient check-in, enable staff to customize the experience for multiple patients, and make it easier for eyecare professionals to manage business aspects critical to their practice’s ongoing success.
Trefethen named Radius XR CMO
The launch of Radius XR is guided by John Trefethen, who joins the company as Chief Marketing Officer. Trefethen previously served in leadership roles at several medical device companies, including industry giants Zeiss Medical Technology and Topcon Healthcare.
“Early diagnosis is the key to treating many conditions that can lead to vision loss,” said Trefethen. “We believe a testing platform that combines a comfortable size with an engaging, immersive experience makes patients more likely to seek testing — and to be re-tested more frequently. Diagnosing conditions earlier and regularly tracking disease progression gives eyecare professionals an immense advantage in caring for their patients’ vision.
For the more than 30 million Americans with vision defects that negatively impact their lives, the potential of Radius XR is genuinely life-changing.”
The Radius XR platform is available for eyecare professionals to experience firsthand throughout the AAO 2022 meeting at Booth #4218.
About Radius XR – RadiusXR.com
The Radius XR platform is a portable vision diagnostic and patient engagement system that combines medical-grade diagnostics, business management, and patient education tools in a single wearable AR/VR device.
The RadiusExam® proprietary algorithm provides diagnostic testing results equivalent to current exam gold standards, with the clinical science validated by Deming regression. As the algorithm presents stimuli to patients, Radius Adaptive® responds to maximize the algorithm’s speed.
The total hardware and software system helps medical professionals diagnose patients with accuracy, grow their eyecare practices, enhance patient engagement, and reduce staff workload by enabling patients to perform self-guided vision exams with minimal supervision.
Radius XR builds on the therapeutic legacy of IrisVision, the first clinically validated wearable low vision solution. IrisVision was backed by a research grant from the National Eye Institute and developed in collaboration with researchers from top ophthalmology centers at Johns Hopkins University, Stanford University, and UPMC Pittsburg.
[footnote]
1. Lynn A. Blewett, Julia A. Rivera Drew, Miriam L. King, Kari C.W. Williams, Natalie Del Ponte, and Pat Convey. IPUMS Health Surveys: National Health Interview Survey, Version 7.1 [dataset]. Minneapolis, MN: IPUMS, 2021. https://doi.org/10.18128/D070.V7.1
View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20220928005007/en/