Elucid
AI analysis of coronary and carotid CT angiography that quantifies and classifies atherosclerotic plaque morphology. PlaqueIQ received FDA 510(k) clearance in October 2024 and is distinguished by its ground truth: the convolutional neural networks were trained on carotid endarterectomy histopathology images co-registered to CTA scans, so plaque components are classified against actual tissue rather than against Hounsfield unit thresholds. Because Hounsfield values overlap between tissue types such as lipid rich necrotic core and intraplaque hemorrhage, the software interprets the spatial distribution of tissue properties across adjacent voxels instead of applying fixed HU ranges. The company markets this as CT Virtual Histology. The product reports patient, vessel, and lesion level plaque composition, with particular emphasis on lipid rich necrotic core, a plaque type associated with heart attack and stroke risk. A carotid artery version launched in October 2025, extending the same approach to stroke risk. An FFRCT product derived from the plaque algorithm, which the company argues yields concordance between plaque findings and ischemia estimates, remains pending FDA clearance and should not be treated as available. Reimbursement is established rather than theoretical: four of the seven Medicare Administrative Contractors extended coverage for AI enabled quantitative coronary plaque analysis from November 2024, the radiology benefit manager EviCore added it to coverage guidelines, and United Healthcare aligned its cardiac imaging guidelines to include coronary CTA plaque quantification across all plans from October 2025. Note that the workflow is not fully autonomous: trained analysts segment the data to create the 3D coronary model before the software classifies and quantifies tissue. Indexed alongside Cleerly, its closest comparator, with which it is routinely benchmarked in the peer reviewed literature.
Capability Axes
The product is the algorithm. PlaqueIQ has no meaningful non-AI version: the entire commercial claim rests on convolutional neural networks classifying plaque components, and the company describes itself as an AI medical technology company rather than an imaging company that added AI. No underlying services business or hardware line dilutes this.
Not autonomous, and the company is clear about why. Specially trained analysts segment the CTA data to build the 3D coronary model before the software identifies, classifies and quantifies tissue composition. Output is an interpretive report supporting a physician decision, not a diagnosis. Graded B rather than A because the human step is disclosed but its extent is not quantified: the company does not publish how much analyst time each case requires or how often analyst segmentation is revised, which matters for both throughput claims and reproducibility.
Unusually specific for an imaging vendor. Independent peer reviewed literature describes the architecture: convolutional neural networks trained on carotid endarterectomy histopathologic images co-registered to CTA for ground truth, using spatial distribution of tissue properties across adjacent voxels rather than fixed Hounsfield unit ranges, precisely because HU values overlap between lipid rich necrotic core, intraplaque hemorrhage and other components. That is a named, checkable technical mechanism rather than a claim of proprietary accuracy.
The histology co-registration validation is a genuinely strong evidentiary foundation and is described in peer reviewed literature. Elucid also appears as one of three named commercial vendors in Radiology: Cardiothoracic Imaging and Applied Radiology reviews of the field, which is third party visibility rather than vendor marketing. Graded B not A because that same 2026 Radiology: Cardiothoracic Imaging review states plainly that reproducibility, added prognostic value, clinical impact and lesion level assessment for actionable risk prediction remain open questions across the whole category. Validation against tissue truth is not the same as evidence that use changes outcomes.
No published PHI handling detail, de-identification policy, or statement on whether customer imaging data is used for model retraining was located at the time of review.
No published BAA terms or HIPAA posture statement located at the time of review.
No SOC 2, HITRUST, ISO 27001 or ISO 13485 attestation, and no trust center, located at the time of review. Compare Ibex Medical Analytics, which publishes the most complete cert set in the index.
PlaqueIQ received FDA 510(k) clearance announced October 2024 for non-invasive quantification and classification of plaque morphology, and a carotid version launched October 2025. Graded A with one important scoping caveat the company states plainly rather than blurring: the FFRCT product derived from the plaque algorithm is pending clearance and is not available. That disciplined separation of the cleared product from the pipeline product is the same practice that earned Milvue credit, and buyers should confirm that any FFRCT discussion is treated as future capability.
No demographic subgroup analysis located. This matters more than usual here: the ground truth training set is carotid endarterectomy specimens, meaning tissue from patients who underwent surgery, which is a specific and non-representative population. Whether plaque classification performance holds across sex, age and ethnicity is not addressed in any located material, and cardiovascular risk stratification has well documented disparities.
No named PACS, RIS or EHR integration list located at the time of review. For a CTA analysis product the relevant integration surface is the imaging stack rather than the EHR, and no specific vendor integrations were disclosed in located materials.
Deployment architecture not disclosed in located materials. The analyst segmentation step implies scans leave the originating site for processing, but neither the hosting model nor data residency terms were published.
No list price published, but like Cleerly the commercially decisive variable is reimbursement rather than licence cost, and here the coverage position is concrete and verifiable. Four of seven Medicare Administrative Contractors extended coverage for AI enabled quantitative coronary plaque analysis effective November 2024, EviCore added it to its guidelines, and United Healthcare aligned its cardiac imaging guidelines to include coronary CTA plaque quantification across all plans from October 2025. A buyer can establish the revenue path without a price list. Graded B rather than A because payer coverage of the procedure is not the same as a disclosed vendor fee structure.
Deliberately narrow. Coverage is atherosclerosis in coronary and, since October 2025, carotid arteries, serving cardiology and vascular medicine. This is depth rather than breadth and is a reasonable strategy, but against index peers spanning multiple body systems and specialties the coverage is limited, and it is graded on the same scale as those vendors.
Pricing
Vendor-published figures are labeled as such. Figures labeled “Estimated” are derived from third-party sources and have not been confirmed by the vendor.
| Entry Price | Pricing Basis | BAA Tier | Implementation | Source |
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Not published
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Undisclosed. Payer coverage established for the underlying procedure. | — | — | Vendor Published |
No list price, per-scan fee or licence structure published. The commercially meaningful disclosure here is payer coverage rather than vendor price, and that coverage is concrete: four of the seven Medicare Administrative Contractors extended coverage for AI enabled quantitative coronary plaque analysis beginning November 2024, radiology benefit manager EviCore included the technology in its coverage guidelines, and United Healthcare updated its cardiac imaging guidelines to include coronary CTA plaque quantification across all plans from October 2025. Buyers evaluating this product should model the reimbursement path first, as with Cleerly, because that determines whether the scan is billable rather than what the software costs. Note that the FFRCT product is pending FDA clearance and carries no coverage position.