Philips And King's College London To Work Together On Developing New Ways To Improve Diagnosis And Treatment Of Cardiovascular Disease

Main Category: Heart Disease
Also Included In: Cardiovascular / Cardiology;  Medical Devices / Diagnostics;  MRI / PET / Ultrasound
Article Date: 23 Oct 2008 - 1:00 PDT

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Royal Philips Electronics (NYSE:PHG, AEX:PHI) today announced a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for a five-year research collaboration with King's College London.

Under the multi-million Euro agreement, Philips and King's College London's Division of Imaging Sciences will develop new medical imaging research projects with a particular focus on cardiology and cardiac electrophysiology. One of the key areas of focus will be on combining different imaging technologies, such as X-ray, MRI, ultrasound and CT, to help doctors navigate their way through a patient's heart during minimal-invasive procedures.

Philips and King's College London have already built a long-standing relationship, in particular through the College's Division of Imaging Sciences, in the areas of image analysis, especially in the field of Magnetic Resonance Imaging, diagnostics and interventional guidance. The new agreement aims at the continuation of long-term collaboration in these fields and will also seek to establish new research projects into medical imaging for cardiovascular disease, cardiac arrhythmias and pediatric diseases.

Reza Razavi, Professor of Paediatric Cardiovascular Science at King's College London and Head of the Division of Imaging Sciences, said: "We have a long history of working closely with Philips and this new agreement will allow us to continue our research into cardiovascular disease for many more years. Through our research we hope to advance the way we diagnose and treat heart conditions and so improve the care of children and adults with cardiovascular disease."

Steve Rusckowski, CEO of Philips Healthcare and member of the Board of Management of Royal Philips, added: "We believe that understanding the needs of patients and care providers ensures we create solutions that best meet their requirements and so are very proud to be working in close co-operation with Professor Razavi, the team at King's College London and Guy's & St Thomas' Hospital. Through these innovative research projects we hope to find new ways of delivering cardiology care that will offer real benefits for patients and clinicians."

King's through its commercial arm, King's College London Business, is focused on creating mutually beneficial industrial collaborations of this kind as part of its translational research agenda.

About Royal Philips Electronics

Royal Philips Electronics of the Netherlands (NYSE: PHG, AEX: PHI) is a diversified Health and Well-being company, focused on improving people's lives through timely innovations. As a world leader in healthcare, lifestyle and lighting, Philips integrates technologies and design into people-centric solutions, based on fundamental customer insights and the brand promise of "sense and simplicity". Headquartered in the Netherlands, Philips employs approximately 128,000 employees in more than 60 countries worldwide. With sales of EUR 27 billion in 2007, the company is a market leader in cardiac care, acute care and home healthcare, energy efficient lighting solutions and new lighting applications, as well as lifestyle products for personal well-being and pleasure with strong leadership positions in flat TV, male shaving and grooming, portable entertainment and oral healthcare. http://www.philips.com.

About King's College London

King's College London is one of the top 25 universities in the world (Times Higher 2008) and the fourth oldest in England. A research-led university based in the heart of London, King's has 19,700 students from more than 150 countries, and 5,400 employees. King's has an outstanding reputation for providing world-class teaching and cutting-edge research. The College is in the top group of UK universities for research earnings and has an overall annual income of approximately £450 million. An investment of £500 million has been made in the redevelopment of its estate.

King's has a particularly distinguished reputation in the humanities, law, social sciences, the health sciences, natural sciences and engineering, and has played a major role in many of the advances that have shaped modern life, such as the discovery of the structure of DNA. It is the largest centre for the education of healthcare professionals in Europe and is home to five Medical Research Council Centres - a total unsurpassed by any other university.

King's College London and Guy's and St Thomas, King's College Hospital and South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trusts are working together to create a world-leading Academic Health Sciences Centre (AHSC). Our AHSC brings together an unrivalled range and depth of clinical and research expertise, spanning both physical and mental health. Our combined strengths will drive improvements in care for patients, allowing them to benefit from breakthroughs in medical science and receive leading edge treatment at the earliest possible opportunity. For more information, visit http://www.londonsahsc.org

King's College London Business Ltd

King's College London Business is the wholly-owned subsidiary company of King's College London, responsible for the commercial development of research and innovation at King's. Responsive to the needs of business and industry, the King's Business team leads the licensing of new technologies, supports creations of new business ventures, engages consultancy services and develops new business partnerships. King's Business promotes knowledge creation with the College across a variety of sectors including industry, commerce, the public sector and creative and cultural organizations. http://www.kcl.ac.uk/business

Sources
Gert van Santen
Philips Corporate Communications
http://www.philips.com

Kate Moore, Public Relations Officer (Health Schools)
KCL Public Relations Department
http://www.kcl.ac.uk