Manchester, UK, and Sudbury, MA, May 31, 2011 — Optasia Medical Inc., a leading provider of imaging productivity tools today announced that it has joined the National Bone Health Alliance (NBHA). Optasia Medical’s premier product, SpineAnalyzer™, is an innovative workflow tool for the quantitative assessment of vertebral deformities in patients at risk of osteoporotic fractures. The output of the device may be used by physicians to assist in the diagnosis of vertebral fractures, a key factor to determine if therapeutic intervention is indicated.
The ability to accurately assess vertebral fractures is rapidly gaining an increased role in clinical practice.
The National Osteoporosis Foundation’s Clinician’s Guide to Prevention and Treatment of Osteoporosis states that patients with a clinical or morphometric vertebral fracture should be considered for treatment even in cases when their bone density is not at a level considered osteoporotic. In addition, the Guide recommends using the World Health Organization’s Fracture Risk Assessment Tool (FRAX) to estimate a patient’s 10-year fracture risk, where previous fractures, including vertebral fractures, have a significant impact on a patient’s risk.
Established in 2010, the National Bone Health Alliance (NBHA) is a public-private partnership that brings
together the expertise and resources of various partners across a broad spectrum to promote bone health
and prevent disease; improve diagnosis and treatment of bone disease; and enhance bone research,
surveillance and evaluation. Founding members include the American Academy of Orthopedic Surgeons,
American Society for Bone and Mineral Research, Health Monitor Network, National Osteoporosis
Foundation, the Paget Foundation for Paget’s Disease of Bone and Related Disorders and the Osteogenesis
Imperfecta Foundation. For more information on the NBHA, visit www.nbha.org.
“Optasia Medical is very pleased to have joined twenty-two other leading healthcare organizations and
providers in support of the initiatives of the NBHA” said Jim DePass, Optasia Medical’s Vice President of
Business Development for the US. “In 2005, over 2 million osteoporosis-related fractures occurred in the
US, a number expected to reach 3 million by 2025. The costs related to these fractures were $16.9 billion
in 2005 and are predicted to rise to $25 billion by 2025. Despite the availability of bone densitometry and
pharmacological therapies, the incidence and costs related to osteoporosis have not decreased. What we
sorely need to reduce these costs is more public awareness of osteoporosis in combination with better
tools for diagnosis and treatment and that is the goal of the NBHA.”
Contact:
James DePass, VP Business Development, US
Tel: +1 (608) 469-6259
Email: james.depass@optasiamedical.com
Comments are closed.