Heuron Demonstrates Economic Value of AI-Based Parkinson’s Disease Triage Technology in International Journal

Dec. 2025

Seoul, South Korea – Heuron, a medical artificial intelligence (AI) company specializing in neurological disorders, announced on the 23rd that a research paper analyzing the economic value of its AI-based MRI Parkinson’s disease triage technology has been published in the international journal Frontiers in Public Health.

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The study quantitatively evaluated whether an AI-based MRI triage strategy can reduce reliance on high-cost PET scans while maintaining both clinical and economic efficiency in the diagnostic process for Parkinson’s disease (PD), using healthcare system data from South Korea and the United States.


Through this joint research with Yonsei University, the research team developed a cost-benefit analysis model comparing an AI-based MRI strategy with conventional clinical decision-making and PET-centered diagnostic approaches. The model leveraged an AI-based MRI analysis technology designed to detect signal loss in the nigrosome-1 region of the substantia nigra, a key pathological hallmark of Parkinson’s disease.


The analysis incorporated multiple real-world scenarios reflecting actual clinical and healthcare environments, including AI adoption rates (30%, 65%, and 100%), AI usage costs, and differences in PET accessibility.

According to the results, the AI-based MRI triage strategy generated positive net economic benefits in both short-term (1-year) and long-term analyses.


In South Korea, the model estimated an annual net benefit of approximately USD 9.3 million at a 30% AI adoption rate, increasing to approximately USD 31 million when adoption reached 100%.

In the United States, the corresponding annual net benefit was estimated at approximately USD 76 million at a 30% adoption rate, rising to more than USD 250 million at full adoption.

Notably, the application of the AI-based triage strategy resulted in a reduction of unnecessary PET scans by more than 30%, suggesting that the approach could simultaneously achieve healthcare cost savings and improved diagnostic accessibility.


The study also conducted a sensitivity analysis examining changes in economic outcomes based on AI usage costs.

As a result, the net benefit of the AI-based MRI triage strategy remained positive up to an AI cost of approximately USD 226 in South Korea and USD 1,506 in the United States.

These findings indicate that, within realistic pricing ranges, AI-based MRI triage technology maintains strong economic viability from a health-economic perspective.


A Heuron representative stated,

“This study confirms that AI-based MRI technology can serve as a practical health-economic alternative, going beyond a simple diagnostic support tool in the cost-intensive diagnostic pathway of Parkinson’s disease. In particular, it is meaningful that we quantitatively demonstrated the greater value of AI in environments with limited access to PET imaging.”

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