WALTHAM, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Echosens, a high-technology company offering the FibroScan family of products, today announces the release of its white paper authored by Dr. Reed Hogan, M.D., GI Associates (GIA) in Flowood, Mississippi, “Understanding the Many Benefits of Comprehensive, Chronic Care Management (CCM) of Liver Disease.” Hogan articulates the effective collaboration between Echosens and MetaPhy Health, providers of chronic care management (CCM) services for gastroenterology practices, to develop CCM programs for liver disease. These programs integrate FibroScan, non-invasive technology to rapidly examine liver stiffness and fat at the point of care and address Type 2 diabetes and obesity. This approach validates results, improves patient outcomes, reduces costs associated with liver disease and, concurrently, strengthens the financial performance of gastroenterology practices.
Hogan explains, “Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NALFD) and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) are highly prevalent in people living with metabolic syndrome (MetS), are recognized as leading causes of liver disease, and acknowledged as key contributors to increased cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality among people living with Type 2 diabetes. Given these factors, our practice has built out an ancillary CCM program to address liver disease and successfully integrated FibroScan capabilities with the MetaPhy CCM model. We are now able to provide services to patients across the spectrum of NAFLD, leveraging FibroScan to monitor and engage patients. Effective lifestyle modification has been shown to cease and often reverse the progression of fibrotic NASH.”
NAFLD and NASH are tightly intertwined with obesity, diabetes and lifestyle, requiring more coordinated engagement to support behavioral changes that will result in better outcomes across the co-morbid conditions affecting the individual patient and the course of liver disease.
Jon Gingrich, CEO, Echosens North America, says, “Gastroenterology practices are at the forefront of managing NAFLD and NASH, and CCM provides the opportunity to cost-effectively improve that coordination. If you simply look at patient care, GI doctors can change the game for these underserved patients with the exceptional ancillary of FibroScan and MetaPhy’s effective CCM program. They are now able to create healthcare pathways that will improve outcomes, save lives and, in these challenging times, begin income repair for their practices.”
NAFLD has become the most common chronic liver disease in the world and affects between 25% to 30% of adults in the United States. About 20% of patients with NAFLD will progress to NASH, with around one-quarter of those developing liver fibrosis.
Chris Oubre, president and chief operating officer, MetaPhy, states, “The traditional approach of telling a patient that they need to change has not been adequate. Most patients want to change but may face barriers or challenges to achieving this in a meaningful and sustainable way. Our chronic care disease management programs engage the patient to better understand their situation and tailor a plan that helps address their circumstances with high touch and compassionate care.”
About Echosens
Echosens, the developer of FibroScan®, is an innovative high-technology company offering a full range of products and services supporting physicians in their assessment and management of patients with chronic liver diseases. FibroScan is supported by over 2,500 peer-reviewed publications and examinations are covered by Medicare, Medicaid and many insurance plans. For more information, please visit http://www.echosens.us and follow us on Twitter (@echosensNA).
