Cylinder, a leading virtual platform for digestive health care, has announced its acquisition of Dieta Health, the developer of the first clinically validated AI-powered stool imaging app. This strategic move is designed to enhance Cylinder’s capabilities in providing more personalized digestive care and improving clinical outcomes.
Cylinder has supported nearly 100,000 members to date through its virtual health platform. The platform offers dynamically updated content and individualized care plans, supporting patient engagement and positive outcomes. Members are granted nationwide access to a multidisciplinary care team, including health coaches, registered dietitians, and gastroenterologists.
Cylinder is committed to innovation, aiming to provide accessible, personalized, and affordable digestive healthcare. The acquisition of Dieta Health integrates advanced AI technology for digestive health monitoring. Traditionally, patients with gastrointestinal conditions have relied on subjective self-reporting tools, such as the Bristol Stool Scale, to inform diagnosis and treatment decisions.
Dieta’s AI-driven application enables patients to capture stool images via smartphone, analyzing them with five clinically validated data points. This technology offers superior accuracy compared to conventional patient-reported outcomes, and its efficacy has been validated through peer-reviewed studies from Cedars-Sinai and Mayo Clinic. Dieta’s database includes hundreds of thousands of stool images linked to various diagnoses and clinical contexts, contributing to advancements in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) treatment, ulcerative colitis monitoring, and cirrhosis management.
Integrating Dieta’s technology into Cylinder’s platform will allow for quicker, more precise insights into gastrointestinal conditions, enabling earlier diagnoses and more tailored treatment strategies. The acquisition also reinforces Cylinder’s clinical partnerships and cost-reduction initiatives. By detecting critical shifts in bowel patterns, such as the presence of blood, the system allows for proactive interventions, potentially preventing complications that could lead to costly hospitalizations.
Gastrointestinal conditions affect 40% of the population daily, significantly impacting healthcare expenditures and quality of life. GI-related issues account for 8.3 million emergency room visits annually, costing the U.S. healthcare system $136 billion—exceeding expenditures for heart disease or mental health. This highlights the need for more effective, technology-driven solutions.
Beyond patient care, Cylinder’s digital health platform benefits employers by potentially reducing absenteeism and healthcare costs. Its comprehensive, expert-backed approach supports a full spectrum of gastrointestinal concerns, focusing on long-term health improvements over short-term symptom management.
As part of the acquisition, Asaf Kraus, Dieta Health’s founder and CEO, along with three key team members, will join Cylinder to continue driving clinical research and integrating AI technology into the platform. This strategic expansion supports Cylinder’s 2025 growth objectives, delivering immediate clinical advantages while fostering long-term innovation in digestive health.
