CT Scans in Children
Animal Health ProductsOur Focus
AspenBio is focused on its unique blood-based test, AppyScore™, a product being developed to assist emergency department physicians manage low risk patients suspected of having acute appendicitis. Abdominal pain is the number one reason people report to the emergency departments of hospitals. According to CDC data, in the United States over 9.5 million people enter emergency departments annually complaining of abdominal pain. Diagnosing the cause of abdominal pain can be challenging and urgent because a delayed diagnosis often negatively impacts the patient's health and increases cost. Unfortunately, diagnosing acute appendicitis, a common cause of abdominal pain, is particularly challenging as up to 50% of the patients do not present with classical symptoms. AppyScore™ is designed to help physicians in the process of identifying and managing which patients entering the emergency room do not have appendicitis through the use of the test's negative predictive value and sensitivity. The use of the AppyScore™ test could potentially reduce the number of CT scans performed on low risk patients, and thereby, reduce radiation exposure risk for patients, health care costs, and enhance emergency department efficiency.
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We expect AppyScore™, if it receives regulatory clearance, will be used to aid emergency department physicians in managing the large number of patients complaining of abdominal pain by helping to rule out acute appendicitis in low risk patients. Currently, CT scans are often used to diagnose and rule out acute appendicitis, but this comes at a high monetary cost and exposes patients to ionizing radiation. This is particularly alarming when performed in pediatric patients who are in their high growth period and in the greatest danger of experiencing long term health risks from early age radiation exposure. Potentially, the use of AppyScore™ could avoid exposing low risk patients to unnecessary radiation from CT scans while reducing cost. Our current focus is to validate AppyScore™ in the emergency department's management of children and adolescents presenting with signs, symptoms, and history suggestive of acute appendicitis but who are believed to be at low risk of having the disease.
Additionally, AspenBio has several novel reproduction drugs in development anticipated for use in livestock and horses.
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