A single wearable device just replaced a room full of eye exam equipment. It runs four tests in the time it takes to read this sentence twice.
Heru, a Miami-based diagnostic software company, launched PretestPro this week. The tool runs four pretest eye exams in 90 seconds on its Heru Prime wearable platform.
From Bascom Palmer Research to a Wearable Device
Heru was born out of the University of Miami's Bascom Palmer Eye Institute. It's ranked the number one eye hospital in the nation. The platform draws on 15 years of vision science research and clinical validation.
Founder and CEO Dr. Mohamed Abou Shousha is also a clinical ophthalmology professor at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.
"Traditional pretesting requires multiple devices and several manual steps," Abou Shousha said. "PretestPro consolidates these tests into a single wearable exam that runs about three times faster than traditional testing."
What the Device Actually Replaces
PretestPro uses virtual reality and eye tracking to run four pretest exams in one guided session. That includes an 8-point suprathreshold test, near cover test, extraocular motility check and quantitative pupillometry.
Patients are guided through the process by Nora, Heru's AI-driven fixation target. Add a 30-second visual acuity test, and clinicians can complete half their pretesting workflow in about two minutes.
Kelly Kiersch, an optometrist assistant at Focus on Eyes, a Vision Source member practice, described the practical impact directly. "It saves us precious time working up our pretests, and our patients love it," she said.
The Clinical Credibility Behind the Claims
Heru isn't a startup making unverified claims about a new gadget. The device is FDA-registered and backed by more than 70 patents.
The platform has been used to test more than 1.9 million eyes. Peer-reviewed evidence has been published across the VR and eye-tracking methods PretestPro relies on.
Why Speed Matters for Everyday Clinics
Replacing a room full of legacy testing equipment with one portable device changes more than convenience. It changes throughput.
Faster pretesting means more time for exam lane availability and patient education. Those are the parts of an eye exam that a device can't automate.
What This Means for Miami's Health Tech Scene
All current and future Heru Prime customers get PretestPro free through an automatic software update. That extends the tool's reach without a new purchase decision.
Heru was built entirely on Bascom Palmer's own research. Academic depth from a top Miami institution, delivered via a direct spinout, is exactly the model biotech investment has favored nationally.