Melbourne, 6 November (IANS). Australian scientists are developing an artificial intelligence (AI) tool that will be able to more accurately detect chronic heart and kidney diseases by analyzing images of the retina (membrane of the eye).
The aim of this research project, led by Australia’s Monash University, is to create a ‘foundational AI model’ that can identify many types of systemic diseases (diseases that affect the entire body and not a single organ) through retinal images.
Xinhua News Agency quoted a statement issued by the university as saying that with the help of advanced AI technology, the research team will analyze retinal images linked to the health data of hundreds of thousands of people so that non-invasive and more accurate screening tools can be developed and these can help in timely identification, treatment and prevention of the disease.
Options are very limited in existing devices. Their cost is also high, which makes their widespread use difficult.
According to Monash University Associate Professor Zhongyuan Ge, the project is based on de-identified (anonymized) data collected over the years, creating a multimodal AI model (a type of machine learning that can process and analyze multiple data or modalities simultaneously). This model will be able to identify multiple diseases simultaneously, which will be much more comprehensive than ‘single-disease’ (focused on one disease) methods so far.
Zachary Tan, president of Optane Health (who is co-leading the study), said retinal imaging would make it easier to detect diseases early and allow our health system to “focus on prevention, not treatment.”
–IANS
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