GE HealthCare, Cincinnati Children’s form pediatric research program

Cincinnati Children’s and GE HealthCare are forming a strategic research program with the goal of advancing innovation for pediatric care delivery across imaging modalities, including MRI, ultrasound, molecular imaging, and CT.

The research program will establish the pediatric-focused Care Innovation Hub, representing a new model established by GE HealthCare and Cincinnati Children’s to combine their resources and make way for scientific activities to benefit pediatric patients, according to the organizations.

This collaborative, multimodality approach aims to further help build understandings and innovations for diagnostic imaging beyond pediatric use cases, they said. The organizations noted that children are "often the most challenging patients" due to their range of sizes and unique positioning challenges.

Some examples of the research program include the following planned initiatives:

• Build and test prototypes of high-density MR coil arrays sized appropriately for children and developing imaging techniques that address the challenges of imaging a child.
• Collaborate on product development and ensure clinical feedback for pediatric ultrasound use, including for AI algorithms. The organizations will also gather measurable data for improved ultrasound use, such as for pediatric liver imaging.
• Evaluate new and emerging PET and SPECT imaging technologies, including the personalization of treatment plans based on optimized software workflows.
• Further optimize and automate CT workflows for pediatric patients and the clinicians who serve them.