ResApp achieves positive results in study diagnosing respiratory illnesses using algorithms

Digital healthcare provider ResApp Health (ASX: RAP) has achieved further positive results in its Australian adult clinical study for diagnosing respiratory illnesses using its algorithms to measure cough and breathing sounds via a smartphone app.

According to ResApp, the results demonstrate ResApp’s ability to accurately diagnose pneumonia and acute asthma in adult patients with various respiratory illnesses.

University of Queensland associate professor Udantha Abeyratne developed the technology which is based on the premise that cough and breathing sounds carry specific information on the respiratory tract.

A machine learning approach was taken to develop ResApp which can measure and diagnose respiratory illnesses including pneumonia, asthma, bronchiolitis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

In this latest study, ResApp’s algorithms diagnosed community-acquired pneumonia in adult sufferers with acute symptoms or clinical normalcy.

The study comprised 360 patients with pneumonia and 251 people no symptoms or with other diseases such as asthma.

ResApp’s algorithms identified acute asthma in 54 subjects with a positive percent agreement level of 91% and negative percent agreement of 88%.

Results were from “leave-one-out cross validation”.

Additionally, in those 153 patients who underwent lung function testing as well, ResApp algorithms had accurately identified chronic asthma, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, restrictive lung disease or no lung disease at all.

“Delivering accurate results within an adult intended use population is an excellent step forward, further demonstrating that ResApp’s algorithms can be applied effectively in a group of patients with a very broad range of respiratory illnesses,” ResApp managing director and chief executive officer Tony Keating said.

Mr Keating added, the results provided a “strong foundation” for the company to pursue further clinical studies to support regulatory submissions.

“In particular, this new comparison to the gold standard of lung function testing provides an exceptional opportunity to run well-controlled studies for a number of diagnostic tests which have a significant clinical need and outstanding commercial opportunities,” he said.

In the US, pneumonia is the most common reason for hospital admission in adults other than women giving birth. In senior patients, pneumonia has a greater risk of death compared to other hospital admissions.

Meanwhile, obstructive lung diseases such as asthma affects more than 334 million people around the work, with 65 million suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

According to GenesisCare respiratory physician Dr Scott Claxton early diagnosis of respiratory illnesses like chronic obstructive pulmonary disease can help patients self-manage their condition, keeping people out of hospitals and maintaining well-being.

The company received a major setback in September, with results from a previous study being far from impressive. Shares in ResApp went from A$0.31 prior to the trading halt and opened sharply lower at $0.07 once the announcement had been made.

Today by late morning trade, ResApp shares had surged 30% to sit at A$0.093.