AliveCor raises $3 Million for iPhone/Android Heart Monitors

AliveCor has recently managed to raise $3 million in venture capital for the new service they have developed. The company succeeded in creating an application which functions as a low-budget electrocardiogram (ECG) which is compatible with lots of mobile devices, such as iPhones, iPads and Android devices. This series A funding round has been led by Burrill & Company, with the participation of Qualcomm Ventures and of the Oklahoma Life Science Fund.

The application allows users to monitor their hearts by the means of a card-sized wireless device which manages to turn the mobile device into a low-cost heart monitor which has similar features with those which are being used by patients at home or by physicians and other health care providers in hospitals or other types of clinics. Unfortunately, the application has not yet been approved for sale in the US by the FDA, but, the moment this approval will be received, the application will start making a difference when it comes to the medical community. As well, it is not yet sure which is the price interested persons will have to pay for the product, but an earlier coverage by the Wall Street Journal indicated an amount of a $100 price point.

The service is quite simple to use, as you only have to attach the mobile device to the AliveCor iCard with a piece of Velcro or by slipping the device into a wireless case, both of these instruments have electrodes, after which you have to either hold the device in your hand or to approach it against your chest in order for it to display the records of your heart rate. This means that there is no need for you to configure your phone in a particular way, you only have to launch the application and it will start working. Moreover, you don’t even have to connect the electrodes directly to your skin, as their work will be effective if you only connect them through your shirt.

This device is revolutionary as it allows you to monitor your heart and download the results on your computer into a PDF file which can be sent to your doctor in order to see the indications that he or she suggests. This device will also come in handy for those persons who are looking to train themselves in order to relax by leading their heart rate down, case in which the device will function as a biofeedback instrument.

Steven Burrill, the CEO at Burrill & Company, stated the following: “The rapid rise of smartphones and tablets combined with the power of social media networks has forever changed the way we connect and engage, and it is transforming how we manage our personal health and wellness. AliveCor’s innovative use of smartphone technologies has created a high-performance electrocardiogram recorder at a disruptive price that enables consumers to monitor their heart health anywhere at any time and provides physicians with a more comprehensive assessment of their patients.”

AliveCor intends to use the money gained in this funding round in order to run additional clinical studies at the University of Oklahoma, in order to pursue the regulatory approvals and in order to prepare the device for its commercial launch.