September 17, 2020
A highly, artificial intelligence-driven blood test for Kawasaki Disease, HART KD has been developed by Prevencio, Inc. The news was announced today. The company collaborated with Seattle Children’s Research Institute and leveraged its Artificial Intelligence (AI)-driven HART platform and expertise in developing cardiac blood tests.
Kawasaki disease is a rare but fatal childhood disease that causes inflammation in the walls of arteries throughout the body. It occurs mostly in children younger than 5 years old. Previously, there were no specific tests available for diagnosis. Experts like Dr. Michael Portman from Seattle Children’s Hospital believe that COVID-19 is triggering Kawasaki disease in some cases.
“Among the main presenting symptoms of Kawasaki disease are persistent fever and rash. This makes diagnosis challenging as thousands of children with these symptoms present annually to U.S. emergency departments,” stated Michael Portman, MD, director of pediatric cardiovascular research at Seattle Children’s and professor of pediatrics at the University of Washington School of Medicine. “With COVID-19-associated Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), diagnosis of Kawasaki disease has become even more challenging and critical as the two have similar presenting symptoms, and it remains unclear whether Kawasaki disease can be triggered by the COVID virus.”
Without early treatment, Kawasaki disease can cause an increased risk of coronary (heart) artery dilation and aneurysms (ballooning), leading to the need for lifelong therapy and cardiac interventions.
“Before this, there was no specific diagnostic test for Kawasaki disease,” Portman added. “We are excited with the robust accuracy of HART KD and appreciate our collaboration with Prevencio to address this critical, unmet medical need.”
Prevencio used their long-standing, certified laboratory partner, Myriad RBM, to conduct protein measurements on blood samples collected from children with Kawasaki disease and is developing commercial options for offering HART KD for children suspected of Kawasaki disease.
“We are pleased to collaborate with Seattle Children’s Research Institute, one of the nation’s top five pediatric research centers,” stated Rhonda Rhyne, Prevencio’s chief executive officer. “We are excited to expand use of our AI Hart platform to Kawasaki disease and to be at the forefront of treating COVID-related medical issues. Prevencio retains world-wide exclusive rights and is exploring protein-measuring platforms and licensing partnerships to distribute HART KD.”