An app that detects eye diseases in children

A paper published in Science Advances reports a study that analyzes pupillary reflexes through multiple pictures stored on a device using an app for a smartphone and detects eye diseases much faster than doctors find.

White Eye Detector searches photos stored on smartphones through machine learning and analyzes pupil reflections from flash or strong light to detect signs of diseases such as cataracts, retinopathy of prematurity, retinopathy, and childhood cancer that occur in the retina. Let you know. In the case of healthy eyes, the eyes are reflected red by the camera light, but in the case of the diseased eyes, it is photographed white, so that the presence or absence of a disease can be determined by saturation.

Early detection of vaginal lesions can help save the patient from risk of blindness or death. Retinoblastoma, for example, is said to have the potential to metastasize to the brain and cause death half a year to a year after the fast-growing flash has a white reflex.

To test the app, the research team analyzed 53,000 photos of 40 children. Half of 40 people suffer from eye disease. It is said that by analyzing the photos from birth to how old through the app, it was possible to identify when the disease occurred.

As a result of the analysis, 16 out of 20 patients detected white pupils, and on average, traces were found 1 to 3 years before the doctor diagnosed the disease. Patients with retinoblastoma could be detected 9 months faster than doctors diagnosed. This can be a sufficient time delay to avoid losing your eyeball. The app can be used regardless of age, but the need to analyze more pictures makes it ideal for infants.

The ECG function supported by the Apple Watch can detect atrial fibrillation, and the user who sees it has to go to the hospital for a definitive diagnosis. If this app detects something abnormal, it will give you an opportunity to go to the doctor to find out what’s going on. Without even making a diagnosis, the app can be helpful enough. However, the problem may be that the smartphone camera can easily perform red-eye correction as high-performance and high-functioning. The app is available for both iOS and Android through the App Store and Google Play. Related information can be found here .