Saint Joseph Hospital in Lexington, Ky., has become the first hospital in the state to perform AI-assisted colonoscopies after receiving three GI Genius units as part of Medtronic's Health Equity Assistance program.
The GI Genius modules allow physicians to detect polyps earlier than with traditional colonoscopies, and studies show that AI reduces missed polyps by 50 percent, according to the report.
Medtronic's assistance program sends modules to hospitals in underserved communities with low colon cancer screening rates.
"Kentucky ranks among the top five states with new colorectal cancer diagnoses," Bilal Aslam, MD, a physician at Saint Joseph's, said in a Jan. 4 press release. "This new tool will help us to detect polyps earlier and, hopefully, help us to prevent future colon cancer cases."