Vuzix says its M400 Smart Glasses used in successful COVID-19 study in Malaysia

Vuzix Corporation (NASDAQ: VUZI) said Wednesday that neurosurgeons at the University Malaya Specialist Centre in Malaysia (UMMC) used the company’s M400 Smart Glasses as part of a successful COVID-19 study. Doctors turned to the special glasses as a way to limit the number of medical personnel attending to neurosurgical patients as a protective measure to conserve personal protective equipment.  So they put the glasses to the test, according to Vuzix. READ: Vuzix starts volume production and shipment of its M4000 Smart Glasses to North America, EU and Japan The study involved the glasses during the daily ward round on neurosurgical patients in the Neurosurgery ICU at UMMC using MEDCOM Vision software. Prior to the use of smart glasses when the patient was in the isolation room, it was difficult to see the patient and monitor them because of COVID-19 standard operating procedures. The goal of the study was to determine if telemedicine delivered through smart glasses was feasible and effective in an alternative method of conducting ward rounds on neurocritical care patients during the pandemic.  As part of the study, a random pair of neurosurgery residents and specialists conducted consecutive virtual and physical ward rounds on neurocritical patients. A virtual ward round was first conducted remotely by a specialist who received real-time audiovisual information from a resident wearing smart glasses integrated with telemedicine. Subsequently, a physical ward round was performed together by the resident and specialist on the same patient. The treatment management plans of both ward rounds were compared and the intra-rater reliability was measured. During the study, 10-paired ward rounds were performed on 103 neurocritical care patients with excellent overall intra-rater reliability. Nine out of 10 showed good to excellent internal consistency and one showed acceptable internal consistency. Qualitative analysis indicated wide user acceptance and high satisfaction rate with the alternative method. Conclusion: Effective Vuzix said the conclusion from the study confirmed that virtual ward rounds using telemedicine via Vuzix M400 Smart Glasses on neurosurgical patients in critical care were a feasible, effective, and widely accepted alternative to physical ward rounds during the COVID-19 pandemic. "Vuzix M400 Smart Glasses are now operational in ICUs, operating rooms and medical clinics in many places all over the world,” said CEO Paul Travers in a statement.  "We are excited to learn of this successful COVID-19 pandemic response study conducted by the University Malaya Specialist Centre, which provided independent 3rd party validation of Vuzix Smart Glasses as a clinically proven, effective and widely accepted alternative to physical rounds during the COVID-19 pandemic.” Contact the author: patrick@proactiveinvestors.com Follow him on Twitter @PatrickMGraham