University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics selects VIDA for clinical imaging services

IOWA CITY - A Coralville company has been selected to provide clinical imaging software and analysis services to the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics.

VIDA Diagnostics, which was born out of research at the UI, focuses on lung disease and treatment. The company provides precision pulmonary imaging to aid early detection, evaluation and treatment planning of lung diseases including COPD, emphysema, lung cancer and asthma.

The contract with UIHC represents the company's first direct clinical sale, according to Susan Wood, president and CEO of VIDA. In February 2015, the company received a loan from the Iowa Economic Development Authority through the Iowa Innovation Acceleration Fund to aid its marketing and sales efforts.

Marcel Nienhuis, VIDA director of marketing, said the sale to UIHC was the first resulting from the state's investment.

The state has worked hard to create a continuum of innovation funding to help companies start and grow, said Debi Durham, director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority.

'We are thrilled that the investment in VIDA has enabled them to advance their commercial efforts so rapidly and provide best-in-breed opportunities for patients with or at risk of pulmonary disease,” Durham said.

VIDA will support key pulmonary care initiatives at UIHC, including lung cancer screening, interventional pulmonology and other precision health care efforts.

'The University of Iowa has always pursued advancements in pulmonary care,” said Dr. Joseph Zabner, professor and director, division of pulmonary, critical care and occupational medicine at UI Hospitals and Clinics. 'Bringing advanced pulmonary analysis to the bedside was always the focus of Dr. Geoff McLennan, who was critical to our early successes in interventional bronchoscopy.”

Founded in 2004 by four UI faculty members - Eric Hoffman, Geoff McLennan, Joseph Reinhardt and Milan Sonka, VIDA is based on research associated with the UI's Iowa Comprehensive Lung Imaging Center and on core technology licensed from the UI Research Foundation.