DIAGNOS Announces the Opening of a Clinical Retinopathy Screening Office in Algeria
DIAGNOS Inc. leader in healthcare technical services including screening, software and algorithm development, data analysis, and image processing, announces today the opening of a clinical retinopathy screening office in Algeria.
Diabetic retinopathy is the most common diabetic eye disease and a leading cause of blindness around the world. It is a treatable disease that, as with most diseases, has a higher treatment success rate in its earlier stages. However, there are generally no symptoms until the disease has progressed to more severe stages, making early detection methods critical to helping prevent vision loss. Algeria has a population of 39.21 million people and, according to the International Diabetes Federation, has a diabetic population of 1.64 million and an additional population of 820,000 who have the disease but are undiagnosed.
"Hadi Chakor, an Algerian ophthalmologist who has worked with us in Montreal since 2012, has returned to his home country to setup a clinic that will provide screening for diabetic retinopathy. Hadi obtained an MD in Algeria in 1995, an MSc in Biomedical Engineering in 2004 from the University of Montreal, and a PhD in Biomedical Science in 2014 from the University of Montreal. He is a member of The Association for Research in Vision and Ophthalmology, The Vision Health Research Network, The Canadian Medical Imaging Network, and The Association of Ophthalmologists of Algeria. Hadi will now be the Country Manager of Diagnos Algeria. Diagnos' goal in Algeria is to maximize the efficiency of preventative screening in the Algerian healthcare system by using telemedicine to connect physicians with patients. By our estimates, about 44% of people suffering from diabetes in Algeria have never even consulted an ophthalmologist, let alone done a yearly checkup as clinical guidelines suggest. Our clinic has been setup to provide 40,000 people a year access to screening and will not only create a physical presence for the company in Algeria, but also add to our increasing presence in the Middle East and North Africa region," said Andre Larente, DIAGNOS' President.