AI Precision Medicine Partnership Aims to Improve Chronic Disease Outcomes

Maryland-based MedStar Health and precision medicine technology company Zephyr AI, Inc., have announced a partnership focused on developing artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled precision medicine tools to improve outcomes for chronic diseases, starting with type 2 diabetes (T2D).

According to the press release, the partnership will leverage MedStar Health’s de-identified T2D datasets and patient management expertise to further develop Zephyr AI’s predictive analytics product, known as Insights. The tool is designed to help improve the timeliness of T2D interventions and decrease adverse outcomes such as end-stage chronic kidney disease, dialysis, foot ulcers, and amputations.

“Our partnership with Zephyr AI is a breakthrough opportunity to develop innovative artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities, starting with type 2 diabetes, to benefit our patients and our providers,” said Stephen R.T. Evans, MD, MedStar Health's executive vice president and chief medical officer, in the press release. “Together, Zephyr AI and MedStar Health can develop technology that brings the promise of precision medicine to chronic diseases and that complements our existing programs to improve outcomes and reduce costs for people with diabetes.”

The collaboration is part of a larger effort to boost patient outcomes by using AI to address unmet precision medicine needs from prevention to treatment, the press release states. By enhancing the Insights tool, the partnership aims to improve prediction accuracy for diabetes management using precision medicine.

“The combination of [Insights] with MedStar Health’s data and expertise dramatically increases our collective prediction accuracy and will help both partners shift from a population-level predictive capability to an individual-level predictive capability,” said Zephyr AI CEO David L. Morgan II, in the press release. “This relationship means that we can leverage real-world data from a renowned health system that has one of the most advanced, innovative, and successful T2D programs in the U.S. Ultimately, we believe we can help patients better manage their diabetes by developing predictive tools for clinicians.”

This collaboration is part of an ongoing effort to use AI and machine learning (ML) to evaluate chronic disease progression and support chronic disease management.

Last month, Florida Atlantic University’s (FAU) Schmidt College of Medicine, the Caridad Center, Inc., and the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine shared that they received a $500,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to fund a project aimed at leveraging EHRs, AI, ML, and the Internet of Things (IoT) to tackle chronic disease care disparities, bolster research, and improve outcomes.

In September, California-based multi-specialty medical group UP Medical announced a partnership with clinical intelligence company Memora Health to leverage AI and automation to enhance chronic disease care and management by facilitating more frequent touchpoints with care teams and earlier interventions.