Improved Reflex app from brightlamp unlocks ‘the diagnostic power of the pupil,’ provides diagnostic data for concussions in seconds

Elevating the standard of care, brightlamp’s patented mobile technology platform unlocks the diagnostic power of the pupil for physicians (including optometrists, ophthalmologists and primary care), as well as nurses, athletic trainers and clinical researchers.

 

WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Capturing objective data in about five seconds that can aid concussion diagnoses through an iPhone, the Reflex PLR Analyzer, an industry-disruptive diagnostic tool for traumatic brain injury and various cognitive issues, is rapidly advancing in the healthcare market with the launch of a new version of Reflex, brightlamp’s premier mobile pupillometer technology.

Called a “truly breakthrough innovation in the health care space” by Indiana University innovation expert Donald F. Kuratko, brightlamp’s Reflex product allows a broad spectrum of medical professionals to securely capture critical diagnostic optical data.

“The advanced functionality of this new version of Reflex truly helps unlock the diagnostic power of the pupil,” said Kurtis Sluss, CEO and founder of brightlamp, a Purdue University-affiliated company. “Brightlamp’s patented technology platform captures and measures pupillary light reflex parameters, which has been proven to be an objective, quantitative and non-invasive diagnostic means for a broad spectrum of clinical conditions.”

Reflex’s patented SaaS platform leverages the user-friendly HD Apple iPhone video camera, which serves as a secure mobile data collection and transmission platform for Reflex’s cloud-based evaluation software. “An optometrist, critical care nurse or medical technician can simply bring up the brightlamp app on their iPhone, hold it at the optimal distance from the patient’s eye and brightlamp’s machine learning algorithm takes it from there,” Sluss explained. “Its simplicity, safety and ease of use provides a sideline tool to a variety of medical professionals – such as athletic trainers who need immediate, on-the-field objective data to help diagnose a possible concussion or traumatic brain injury.”

Further, Sluss said, “Now the pupillary light reflex has the potential to become both an optometric or neurological vital as well as a specific biomarker for various medical conditions such as autism, Alzheimer’s and glaucoma."

The secure mobile Reflex platform offers near-instant repeatability of physiological and unbiased tests, which allows diagnosis and recovery monitoring for multiple neurological applications through pupillary light reflex measurements. The new Reflex upgrade offers medical professionals a new opportunity to elevate the standard of care for their patients across of a spectrum of new diagnostic capacities, according to Sluss.

Apart from the highly mobile Reflex technology, other diagnostic methods and pupillary light reflex products presently on the market are either subjective (for example, an existing pen light test methodology that requires interpretation) or require expensive, clumsy and immobile hardware devices.

 

In this upgrade, the Reflex mobile technology now includes test processing on the iPhone that does not require a network connection for capturing immediate diagnosis data. According to Sluss, the new algorithm “raises the bar for medical imaging” by further increasing the reliability of Reflex-captured data over competing products. The new version of Reflex includes access to a secure web portal that allows an opportunity to view, export and manage confidential data with ease. “All of these critical advancements were developed to help further streamline a medical professional’s responsibilities and workflow,” Sluss said.

Response has been positive to the new Reflex update. Dr. Mary VanHoy, neuro-developmental optometrist said, “It’s time that we have something more high-tech to measure pupil response and be consistent from one practitioner to another.” VanHoy, who is also owner of Eyes for Wellness, added, “Reflex now offers the opportunity to have quantifiable data that can be trusted.”

Kathy Sparks, the sports medicine manager at Indiana University Health, noted, “I like the convenience of having this on my cell phone and the simplicity of obtaining data.” She emphasized that “this tool provides objective measurements that give immediate feedback.”

Sluss said, “As the world’s first fully functional mobile pupillometer that requires no additional hardware, Reflex adds immediate value to diagnostic services rendered in a practice setting and can elevate quality of care for optometrists, neurologists, critical care nurses and other medical professionals engaged in providing high-quality and reliable patient services. From the optometry clinic to the football field, Reflex can provide critical and objective diagnostic data in a matter of seconds.”

The Reflex diagnostic tool for concussions and traumatic brain injury represents the first SaaS product from brightlamp. Future brightlamp SaaS products and services are expected to help diagnose a wide variety of cognitive-related issues and functions, particularly as quantitative pupillometry advances as a diagnostic tool for cognitive functionality and clinical issues.

An opportunity to evaluate and sample the Reflex technology is available, including a short-term free trial.

More practice information and independent medical research about current and emerging pupillary diagnostic tools using pupillary light reflex measurements is available online at http://www.brightlamp.org/resources.

Sluss received commercialization guidance from the Purdue Foundry, an entrepreneurship accelerator in the Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship in Purdue’s Discovery Park. Sluss completed Firestarter, a program to guide entrepreneurs through the ideation and startup development product and introduction to customer discovery workshops for information on entrepreneurship.

The technology aligns with Purdue's Giant Leaps celebrating the university’s global advancements made in health, space, artificial intelligence and sustainability highlights as part of Purdue’s 150th anniversary. Those are the four themes of the yearlong celebration’s Ideas Festival, designed to showcase Purdue as an intellectual center solving real-world issues.

About brightlamp

Brightlamp is an Indiana-based health care technology company that specializes in frontier computer vision methods. As recognized by experts such as Donald Kuratko of Indiana University, the company develops innovative breakthrough methods and applies them to mobile solutions to assist in the advancement of health care. Brightlamp’s premier patented technology monitors the eye’s reaction to light so medical professionals can obtain more accurate and consistent neurological information in seconds through a mobile device. The name iPhone is a registered trademark of Apple Inc. For more information, visit www.brightlamp.org.

About Purdue Research Foundation

The Purdue Research Foundation is a private, nonprofit foundation created to advance the mission of Purdue University. Established in 1930, the foundation accepts gifts; administers trusts; funds scholarships and grants; acquires property; protects Purdue's intellectual property; and promotes entrepreneurial activities on behalf of Purdue. The foundation manages the Purdue Foundry, Purdue Office of Technology Commercialization, Purdue Research Park and Purdue Technology Centers. The foundation received the 2016 Innovation and Economic Prosperity Universities Award for Innovation from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities. For more information about funding and investment opportunities in startups based on a Purdue innovation, contact the Purdue Foundry at foundry@prf.org.

Writer: Michael Snyder, msnyder@themekgroup.com

Purdue Research Foundation contact: Chris Adam, 765-588-3341, cladam@prf.org

Source: Kurtis Sluss, ksluss@brightlamp.org