SPECIAL FEATUREConnect with us on ehealthmagazine @ehealthonline eHEALTH Magazine eletsvideos JULY 2019 13
Diagnostic said, “Adoption of digital
pathology facilitates faster reporting
that has made it easy to obtain second
opinions across geographies without
transporting images. It leverages
increased efficiency with a reduced
turnaround time for reporting clinical
cases by reducing error rates.”
Replacing the old technique of
laboratory examination with the new
digital technique means pathology has
now become completely image-based
information, which is retrieved with
the help of computer technology.A BOOMING OPPORTUNITY
The utilisation of advanced pathology
has given enormous opportunities to
pathologists working in labs, colleges,
or even research centres. But the
question lies on what makes this sector
a booming opportunity? Earlier in a
pathology lab, a great deal of time was
squandered in investigating the slides
and examining the tissue tests directly
from the slide. At times transportation
of these slides turned into a sensitive
issue because of its delicate nature.
Things have taken a U-turn,
thanks to digital advancements made
in the healthcare space. With the
new digital scanners and computer
software, sharing of digital images of
tissues electronically with a doctor hasbecome very easy and possible.
When asked about market
opportunities for the diagnostics
space, Zoya Brar, Founder, Core
Diagnostic, said, “While diagnostics
makes up only 3% of total healthcare
expenditure in India, it controls 70%
of the expense downstream and
100% of the outcome. This problem
is even more amplified when you
consider digital pathology. The market
continues to be constrained by the lack
of affordable technology and skilled
manpower. However, given the huge
delta between what we are spending
and the impact of digital pathology, I
am confident that this will change.”CHALLENGING THE CHALLENGES
In India where the ratio of pathologists
to patients is very ordinary, digital
microscope improved the efficiency
and productivity of pathologist and
technicians and is able to connect
with their peers for second opinion.
Through this process, patients of far
flung places will also able to access
accurate diagnosis in a short span
of time. Moreover, implementation
of digital pathology system will help
in reducing costs especially in larger
institutions as it replaces multi-head
microscope with live digital one which
is easy to store and image productiona slide that digital pathology systems
would be able to do within 3 minutes
leveraging artificial intelligence.
Moreover, conventional pathology
is also not very amenable to proper
indexing (incorporating all relevant
searchable fields) and tougher to
retrieve,” said Pallavi Jain, Managing
Director, KRSNAA Diagnostics.
“Digital pathology has been used
widely for teaching purposes. Recent
years have witnessed an increased
use in expert consultations and as an
archival tool for storage of digitised
slides. Use of digital pathology for
routine daily diagnosis, and for
conducting proficiency testing is
now gaining increased acceptance,”
Dr Iyenger added.
Conventional pathology workflows
have innate delays built into the
processes. Transferring unique glass
slides runs the risk of loss, and when
collaborating with others it requires
time, which delays diagnostics.
Joining hands on the rise in digital
pathology, Zoya Brar, Founder, Core