DUBLIN, December 10 /PRNewswire/ --

- Software Addresses Important Unmet Need in Clinical Trials Using 
Echocardiography

ICON plc (NASDAQ: ICLR; ISIN:IE0005711209), a global provider of
outsourced development services to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology and
medical device industries, today announced that its Medical Imaging division
has launched a new cardiac echocardiography analysis software solution. The
software, MIRA-ECHO, enables cardiac echocardiography (ECHO) images to be
viewed, measured and interpreted in clinical trials and is the latest
addition to ICON Medical Imaging's proprietary MIRA(TM) (Medical Imaging 
Review and Analysis) platform.

Dr. Jonathan Goldman MD, Chief Medical Officer at ICON Medical Imaging,
and a recognised expert in echocardiography commented: "MIRA-ECHO satisfies
an important unmet need in clinical trials that involve ECHO. For the first
time we have a solution that allows us to adjust and fine-tune traced cardiac
measurements stored in the eCRF against a moving source image, whilst
maintaining regulatory compliance and an audit trail. Combining MIRA-ECHO to
the existing MIRA-QCA module for quantitative coronary angiography allows us
to offer clients unparalleled capabilities for cardiovascular assessments."

ECHO is a widely used clinical method for assessment of heart structure
and function. It is playing an increasingly important role in clinical trials
as both a marker of cardiac safety and as a measurement of the therapeutic
effects of drugs and devices being evaluated in patients with heart failure.
Currently available ECHO software is limited by the inability of the
interpreting physician to fine-tune tracings of measurements of the borders
of the heart wall against the full motion image of the heart. This
fine-tuning can optimise the accuracy of an important marker of heart
performance - the left ventricular ejection fraction.

MIRA-ECHO is a digital DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in
Medicine) image viewer and analysis software module that is integrated with
an eCRF (Electronic Case Report Form). It displays links from the traced
images back to the measured moving heart image, and also to the numerical
measurements captured in the eCRF. Functionality embedded within the eCRF
allows a physician to adjust preliminary measurements, while maintaining
compliance with 21 CFR Part 11 regulations. MIRA-ECHO also enables
measurement and assessment of the full complement of ECHO parameters.

About ICON Medical Imaging

Located in Warrington, PA, ICON Medical Imaging, a division of ICON plc,
is the leading provider of Medical Imaging core laboratory services to
pharmaceutical, biotech and life science clients globally. The team's
extensive experience and expert guidance enables clients to maximise the
success of their medical imaging endpoints, supporting their current research
and development capabilities. ICON Medical Imaging has managed over 260
imaging trials in oncology, cardiovascular, CNS, medical devices and imaging
agents.

Further information is available at http://www.iconmedicalimaging.com and
http://www.iconplc.com

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