Vital has introduced Vital Guard, an artificial intelligence-based platform designed to help health systems identify and communicate incidental findings documented in radiology reports and clinical notes.

Incidental findings — observations unrelated to the initial reason for imaging — are common in acute care. Studies have estimated that up to 31% of acute imaging exams contain an incidental finding, and a large majority of patients do not complete recommended follow-up. Some of these findings can indicate serious conditions, including cancer, aneurysms and atherosclerosis.

Vital Guard connects to the electronic health record and applies natural language processing to radiology reports and provider documentation. The system generates worklists of findings that were not addressed during the patient encounter and supports outreach to patients through text messaging and clinician follow-up. The company said the tool is intended to centralize and standardize communication workflows across multiple sites.
“Incidental findings represent one of the most common and most preventable breakdowns in patient communication today,” said Justin Schrager, M.D., founder and chief medical officer at Vital. “Vital Guard ensures these clinically significant findings don’t fall through the cracks by helping care teams identify them earlier, communicate them clearly, and close the loop with patients in a way that improves outcomes while reducing risk for providers.”

The company described several cases in which previously undisclosed findings, including a thoracic aortic aneurysm, an adrenal mass, and a malignant kidney lesion, were identified and escalated for follow-up after review by the system.

A 10-week pilot at Mercy Gilbert Medical Center in Arizona reviewed more than 4,400 imaging studies, according to Vital. The platform surfaced more than 1,000 incidental findings, with 259 moderate- to high-risk cases prompting direct patient outreach.

The Claymont, Delaware-based company develops patient engagement software that integrates with existing EHR systems.

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