Lehigh Valley Health Network Announces Artificial Intelligence Technology on World Stroke Day

Artificial intelligence is not just in the movies – it’s an innovative way of using technology to transform stroke care. To help detect stroke more rapidly and start lifesaving treatment even faster, Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) now has leading-edge artificial intelligence software called Viz.ai to analyze the brain.

Gone are the days of waiting for a computer to boot up to view a computed tomography scan (CT scan). Viz.ai can identify large vessel occlusion (LVO) strokes and deliver focused imaging directly to the care team’s mobile devices. No matter which LVHN hospital the patient visits, every neurologist and interventional radiologist in the health network receives a CT notification with high-quality imaging. The team can consult with one another in real time using a texting-like HIPAA-compliant mobile interface.

“LVHN has award-winning stroke expertise, and now we are able to combine that with artificial intelligence,” says Steven Lewis, MD, Chief of Neurology at LVHN. “We are constantly looking for new ways to improve patient care, and this is an example of that.”

This technology can potentially save critical minutes, even hours, in the triage, diagnosis and treatment of strokes. Viz.ai’s image analysis facilitates the fast and accurate triage of suspected LVOs in stroke patients and drives fast treatment decisions to save brain and save lives.

“It’s truly revolutionizing care,” says Yevgeniy Isayev, MD, with LVPG Neurology. “With stroke care, every minute counts in saving a person’s brain, and Viz.ai estimates that this streamlined communication saves care teams an average of 20 minutes.”

Five hospitals in the health network received American Heart Association/American Stroke Association Get With The Guidelines^® Stroke Gold Plus awards. In fact, campuses across LVHN have received Get With The Guidelines recognition for more than a decade.

In 2012, Lehigh Valley Hospital (LVH)–Cedar Crest became one of the first stroke centers in the United States to earn advanced certification as a Comprehensive Stroke Center by The Joint Commission and American Heart Association/American Stroke Association. The LVH–Cedar Crest care team offers the highest standard of care for strokes, and this certification recognizes our expert staff and its advanced training in treating patients with complex strokes.

LVH–Muhlenberg, LVH–Hazleton, LVH–Schuylkill and LVH–Pocono all are certified Primary Stroke Centers. A Primary Stroke Center is a hospital that has developed special procedures to rapidly diagnose and treat a stroke emergency.