A new medical device promises to save lives by diagnosing deep vein thrombosis (DVT) in just a few minutes

AusHealth’s new partnership with Kynetyka Technologies supports a device that promises to dramatically speed up DVT diagnosis and reduce healthcare costs both nationally and internationally

Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a blood clot in a deep vein, usually in the leg. It’s commonly perceived as a risk of flying, but many cases occur in hospitals, clinics and aged care facilities.

DVT can prove lethal.

Before any treatment, a DVT must be diagnosed, which currently relies on expensive ultrasound tests that can take up to 24 hours. Patients with a suspected DVT also risk ‘slipping through the cracks’ as 75 percent of tests return ‘false negative’ results.

Enter DVTect – a new medical device for super-fast DVT screening at the bedside, created by Adelaide-based company Kynetyka Technologies and supported by AusHealth.

This screening tool comprises a sensor, and software which does the ‘thinking’ and provides the result.

So how does it work?

When a patient has a DVT in their leg, the muscles of the calf respond differently to movement. Kynetyka’s DVTect measures this change through a sensor attached to the patient’s calf: the calf is given a light tap to initiate movement and the resulting muscle oscillation waveform is transmitted to the software, which measures the waveform and analyses it for the presence of a DVT.

The entire process takes a few minutes.

DVTect is easy to use at the bedside in hospitals and clinics by nurses or technicians, with minimal inconvenience to the patient.

It is also much more affordable than current practice — alternative hand-held scanning devices start around $6000; large hospital ultrasounds are closer to $200,000.

The device has already aced a pilot study and, with AusHealth funding, is about to undergo further clinical trials with patients at the Royal Adelaide Hospital (RAH).

Kynetyka is also collaborating with AI developer HeartAI, which is based at AusHealth’s commercialisation hub The Accelerator. The HeartAI team will be refining the software based on data collected from the RAH.

According to Kynetyka CEO Craig Newton, “This welcome collaboration with AusHealth will support outcomes such as defined sensitivity and specificity performance, readying DVTect for final hardware and software development, and ultimately routine clinical use and sales.”

According to AusHealth CEO Justin Coombs, “DVTect has the potential to accelerate DVT diagnosis, save lives and reduce healthcare costs both here in Australia and around the world.

“Kynetyka’s project is a brilliant example of the Australian MedTech innovation that AusHealth is proud to support on the path to commercialisation.”

If all goes well, Kynetyka envisages a time when hospital staff, aged care workers, remote communities and even frequent flyers may soon be able to purchase the device from a local chemist.