DIGITAL DIAGNOSTICS, KINGDOM OF SAUDI ARABIA SIGN INTENT TO PROVIDE PREVENTATIVE DIABETIC HEALTHCARE TO 35M

President Biden's Visit to Region Celebrates U.S. Commitment to Economic Development

CORALVILLE, Iowa, July 21, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Leadership from Digital Diagnostics – maker of IDx-DR, the first-ever FDA-cleared, fully autonomous AI system for the diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy – signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Investment during a ceremonial visit with United States of America President Joe Biden. With this MOU in place, the Kingdom and Digital Diagnostics agree to explore potential collaboration around medical services, medical technology, and digital health with a significant economic investment and 1,950 jobs created by 2030.

During the event, the United States and Saudi Arabia signed 18 partnership agreements in industries such as energy, space and healthcare. Aerospace companies Boeing and Raytheon, as well as healthcare companies such as Medtronic and IQVIA were among the partnerships announced.

"Diabetic retinopathy is a serious concern in the Middle East, particularly in Saudi Arabia where nearly one in four people live with diabetes," said Seth Rainford, co-founder, president, and COO of Digital Diagnostics. "Today's memorandum of understanding signing with the Kingdom demonstrates our company's commitment to transform the quality, accessibility, equity, and affordability of healthcare around the globe. We are excited for rapid expansion in the region and are impressed with the Kingdom's speed in adopting artificial intelligence to prevent blindness in its country." 

The Saudi Arabian population has one of the most acute needs for a diagnostic technology like IDx-DR. The prevalence of diabetes in the Kingdom is estimated to be 23.9 percent of the total population, and that figure has been increasing for more than two decades. Additionally, diabetic retinopathy, the most feared complication of diabetes and the primary overall cause of blindness from any disease, has a prevalence from 19.7 percent to 44.7 percent in Saudi Arabia. Despite effective treatment options, a significant number of people with diabetes are going blind each year, largely because they don't undergo appropriate testing for retinopathy.

"The healthcare sector at the Ministry of Investment of Saudi Arabia is looking to attract foreign direct investments of economic and social impact to Saudi Arabia," said Samar Nassar, managing director, healthcare services at Devices, Ministry of Investment, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. "Digital Diagnostics' IDx-DR product helps us achieve that through AI adoption at the primary care level and improving patient outcomes in diabetes, one of the most prominent non-communicable diseases in the KSA."

Digital Diagnostics' product, IDx-DR, automates the diabetic eye exam during the initial patient encounter, allowing for early diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy. This diabetic eye exam improves patient outcomes and saves $1M per patient over their lifetime.

"The Kingdom's ambition around innovation as well as quality of life and care improvements in the country have been abundantly clear, as outlined in the Vision 2030 initiative," remarked Dana Cooney, Vice President of International Sales, Digital Diagnostics. "From our initial conversations around AI in healthcare and how The Kingdom and we could work together to improve health outcomes and create significant economic opportunities for the people of Saudi Arabia, to the momentous memorandum signing, we are thrilled to be a part of the Vision 2030 initiative."

Digital Diagnostics Inc. is a pioneering AI diagnostics company on a mission to transform the quality, accessibility, equity, and affordability of global healthcare through the application of technology in the medical diagnosis and treatment process. The company, originally founded by Michael Abramoff, MD, PhD, a neuroscientist, practicing fellowship-trained retina specialist, and computer engineer, is led in partnership with co-founders John Bertrand and Seth Rainford.

Digital Diagnostics is paving the way for autonomous and assistive AI diagnosis to become a new standard of care, contributing to democratizing healthcare and closing care gaps. The company works closely with patient advocacy groups, federal regulators, and other quality of care and ethics-focused stakeholders to enable the adoption of autonomous AI. For more information and the latest news follow: https://digitaldiagnostics.com/

SOURCE Digital Diagnostics