COMPUMED PARTICIPATES IN 2ND PERIPHERAL BONE DENSITOMETRY WORKSHOP IN CHENGDU, CHINA WORKSHOP CO-SPONSORED BY COMPUMED, GE HEALTHCARE CHINA, HOLOGIC AND DMS-APELEM TO EXPAND USE OF PERIPHERAL TESTING DEVICES IN CHINA WHERE MORE THAN 100 MILLION PEOPLE ARE AFFLICTED
LOS ANGELES, Oct 25, 2006 -- CompuMed, Inc. (CMPD.OB) -- a medical informatics company leading the development of advanced imaging and medical informatics to provide cost effective analysis and monitoring -- served as a featured sponsor of the 2nd Peripheral Densitometry Workshop held October 19 in Chengdu, China.
"We were pleased to be among the sponsors for this international event," said CompuMed CEO, Jerry McLaughlin. "Peripheral densitometry devices, such as the OsteoGram, could play an increasingly important role in developing nations, where expensive, dedicated bone mineral density screening equipment is simply not cost effective. This presents an opportunity for CompuMed's expansion of its services in those markets."
At the Workshop, Dr. Jianhua Wang, a renowned orthopedic surgeon from the Aviation Industry Center Hospital in Beijing, a hospital that recently earned international attention when it was designated as an orthopedic treatment center for the upcoming 2008 Summer Olympics, highlighted his clinical experience with CompuMed's OsteoGram with more than 6,000 patients. Dr. Wang received an award from the Beijing city government for his continuing work with CompuMed's OsteoGram in screening at risk patients for osteoporosis.
The Workshop was held in conjunction with the 2006 International Osteoporosis Conference and was co-hosted by a distinguished panel including Dr. Didier Hans of Geneva University Hospital, Dr. John Shepherd of the University of California at San Francisco and Dr. Wei Yu of Peking Union Medical College Hospital (Beijing, China). Drs. Hans and Shepherd are taking the lead in supporting peripheral densitometry users around the world by creating a course to meet their specific educational needs. In the future the course will be traveling to areas where there is greatest need. The workshop was organized by the Chinese Medical Association, the Department of Radiology at the University of California at San Francisco, and Geneva University Hospital, with corporate sponsorship from companies including CompuMed, GE Healthcare China, Hologic, DMS-Apelem, and Synarc.
As the global population ages, the costs associated with osteoporosis-related disease are predicted to rise dramatically. Osteoporosis is a silent disease that affects more than 200 million people worldwide and is especially prevalent in China, where there are more than 125 million postmenopausal women at risk. Of these, more than 100 million are estimated to currently have the disease in various stages. The traditional Chinese diet lacks calcium, which is a requirement to build strong bones.
The goal of the workshop was to raise the awareness of the utility of using peripheral devices for fracture risk assessment, especially in developing countries where there is a significant under utilization of densitometry to identify women at high risk. Topics and curriculum were developed with input from many of the world's foremost osteoporosis experts working in partnership with leading medical device manufacturers.
CompuMed's OsteoGram is a software-based system for screening, diagnosing and monitoring osteoporosis. It provides an accurate, low-cost alternative to DXA bone mineral density (BMD) screening, and can be utilized in conjunction with rapidly proliferating digital (i.e., filmless) x-ray equipment, as well as existing film-based machines. CompuMed is planning to leverage its expertise in computer aided diagnosis represented by the OsteoGram to provide solutions and services designed to improve the workflow of healthcare providers, improve patient's care and reduce costs. The OsteoGram's vast benefits in terms of cost and efficiency facilitate wider osteoporosis screening and treatment of at-risk patients. It is far less costly and cumbersome to use than conventional BMD testing systems, which require dedicated and expensive equipment, computers, office space and staff.
About CompuMed
Founded in 1973, CompuMed, Inc. (CMPD.OB)is leading the development of advanced imaging and medical informatics to provide cost effective analysis and monitoring solutions. The Company focuses on cardiovascular and musculoskeletal diseases and other diseases associated with aging populations. The Company has unique expertise in telemonitoring, imaging and analysis, which it is deploying to provide solutions and services designed to improve the workflow of healthcare providers, improve patient's care and reduce costs. The company's core products are the OsteoGram and CardioGram systems. The OsteoGram, which is cleared by the FDA for commercial use, is an accurate and precise technology for low-cost osteoporosis testing. The CardioGram system remotely interprets electrocardiograms and is used by private practice, government and corporate healthcare providers nationwide. The CardioGram has the additional capability to automatically provide an over-read (i.e., follow-up review) by a cardiologist. CompuMed is headquartered in Los Angeles. Visit CompuMed at www.compumed.net.
This news release contains forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning CompuMed's plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events or performance and underlying assumptions and other statements that are not statements of historical fact. These statements are subject to uncertainties and risks including, but not limited to, product and service demand and acceptance, changes in technology, ability to raise capital, the availability of appropriate acquisition candidates and/or business partnerships, economic conditions, the impact of competition and pricing, capacity and supply constraints or difficulties, government regulation and other risks identified in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All such forward-looking statements are expressly qualified by these cautionary statements. In addition, the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof, except as required by law.
CONTACT: Susan Tellem - Tellem Worldwide, +1 (310) 479-6111 x.15, stellem@tellem.com