The challenge that a small Israeli company has set for itself, is to
enhance digital images by improving visualisation. Interventional
cardiologists agree that the results of angioplasty would take a
quantum leap forward if they could get an accurate view of the
patient's blood vessels and of the plaque embedded in the vessel
walls while doing the procedure. Neither is it too far-fetched to
suggest that, with the ability to see inside the cardiac blood
vessels, some malfunctions could be repaired by means of a catheter,
instead of open-heart surgery. Not the least of the benefits would be
the possibility to establish stent size, in terms of its length and
diameter.
Cardio-vascular procedures are common, they are major income
producers for the healthcare sector; but they are critical for the
patient. Any improvement in the procedure results in a better quality
of life. Among the barriers faced by practitioners is the opacity of
blood. It has prevented real-time visualization inside the heart and
vessels. This obstacle is likely to be removed as a result of
innovative technology developed by two Israeli engineers. Together
they have more than 30 years of experience in medical imaging. In1999
they joined forces to develop the world's smallest camera, small
enough to be fitted onto a catheter tip, that would traverse cardiac
blood vessels and provide a picture from the inside. The larger scale
technological evaluation prototype is complete. Additional
engineering efforts should bring the camera to the clinical starting
line.
"Our main advantage is in the smallness of size. The concept is
different from anything else done in the field. The miniaturization,
the 3D imaging and seeing through blood, are the unique qualities
that differentiate our endoscopic viewing systems from anything else
available," explains Ofer Pillar, CEO and co-founder of CByond. The
other co-founder is Doron Adler, a lifelong friend and fellow
graduate from Israel's Technion Institute of Technology. Adler is an
expert in camera technology and has served as a consultant to an
Israeli company that recently electrified the medical world by
marketing a "camera pill" which photographs the small intestine, an
area previously not available to be assessed without invasive
procedures.
CByond's technology aims to facilitate Minimally Invasive Surgery
procedures by delivering a 2mm.diameter stereoscopic camera with a
clear, high-quality image and the power to "see" capability through
body fluids, primarily blood.
Taking pictures "through blood" has previously been impossible
because of the problematics of absorption and scattering of light.
CByond's camera is backed by a high-energy light, which allows it to
photograph through blood.
The first product, now being prepared for clinical trials, is a
general-purpose Minimally Invasive Surgery catheter, and system, that
will serve as an integrative operative diagnostic viewing device with
disposable components.
The currently, unmet urgent need is to more accurately visualise and
evaluate small arteries in the cardiovascular system. When this
capability is achieved it will assist with the early diagnosis and
treatment of coronary artery disease. The company believes that it is
on the verge of completing the design and development of
cost-effective, disposable, miniaturized intra-vascular catheters
with see-through-blood capabilities.
Laparoscopic surgery and minimally invasive surgery have become a
reality through the progress achieved in creating new technologies.
These include the development of the charge coupling device chip
(CCD) that allowed high resolution video images, to be transmitted
through an optical scope to a surgeon; high intensity xenon and
halogen light sources that improved visualization of the surgical
field; and improved hand instrumentation designed for endoscopic
approaches.