Algorithm was runned during the Itabuna Diabetes Campaign and helped the health professionals to screen and refer more than 820 Diabetic Retinopathy patients. The solution will be released to the market still in 2021.
Phelcom fundus camera, the Eyer, has been used in Itabuna Diabetes Campaign several times, but this year it was different. In the captured images was runned an Artificial Intelligence algorithm developed by Phelcom, where it could be identified with a good sensitivity and specificity patients with Diabetic Retinopathy (DR) condition.
Exam being performed using the Eyer during the Itabuna Diabetes Campaign.
The sensitivity was 97.8%, what means a high algorithm capacity in identifying patients with DR. When it was analyzed the specificity, the number reached was 61.4%, that indicates the percentage of health patients that the algorithm confirmed that really was healthy. The AUC, Area Under the Curve, was 0.89 and it shows in this scenario a high rate of the algorithm assertivity to refer just DR patients to in person consultation and not the healthy ones.
Sensitivity was high when indicating more than mild cases, the ones where the patient needs to undergo a medical treatment with a specialist – the mild ones are usually monitored at every given time period. Besides specificity was not in a higher score as sensitivity, it was a good result considering the algorithm was not only detecting DR, but other retinal alterations like hypertensive retinopathy, aged macular degeneration (AMD), toxoplasmosis, among others, while the physician was focused on this project to detect just DR cases.
Examples of the algorithm heath map enhancing the colours in regions where it was detected retinal alterations and pointing the percentage of the Retinal Alteration Score. Source: Phelcom.
The article, published in the Journal of Diabetes Science and Technology, points out that screening patients on diabetic retinopathy could be one of the most cost-effective initiatives on diabetes care, but in several scenarios there is insufficient health care structure and resources in terms of funding, trained health care human resources, and facilities.
Eyer is a portable, connected and affordable device to perform posterior and anterior eye exams, these characteristics were highly suited to capture the images during the health campaign. As the equipment offers high quality images, to run an artificial algorithm in the images was a natural step, as it could help the health professionals screen more than 820 patients.
Phelcom has been developing this solution during the past few years, it still has no commercial name, but it will be available on the market still in the first semester of 2021. José Stuchi, CEO at Phelcom, says the company aims to develop new artificial intelligence services that will be aggregated to the EyerCloud, Phelcom’s cloud system to store patients medical records. “We are sure that this new algorithm and other ones we are working on will help physicians to diagnose those challenging conditions that sometimes are difficult to be identified to the unaided eye”, he stands.
When working with scarce resources, whether human, financial or material, Phelcom is creating solutions to break down barriers to eye care access, enabling health professionals to reach patients in different scenarios and regions.
The full publication and results are available in the original article, access: https://journals.sagepub.com/eprint/H58YCATDBNT5YRZYAXKW/full
Undoubtedly, diagnosing Parkinson’s disease is a challenge. Some procedures to identify signs of the disease have high costs, such as computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging. In addition, millions of people worldwide do not have access to these technologies. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), currently, about 6.3 million suffer from the problem.
Since the first symptoms only manifest with the progression of the disease, early detection is another challenge. A new research from the United States has developed a cheaper way to diagnose the disorder: artificial intelligence applied to the retinal exam. The results were presented at the last annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA).
Learn about the study, how it was done and how the results achieved help to democratize access to healthcare.
Research
Researchers at the University of Florida (USA) used the machine learning principleto create an artificial intelligence tool that learns to detect signs of Parkinson’s disease in retinal examinations. They trained the “support vector machine” with eye fundus images of patients with the disease and control participants without the disorder.
As the problem deteriorates nerve cells and, consequently, thins the retinal walls, a simple fundus examination can already diagnose it. The disease also damages the retinal microvasculature.
Results
The results show that Parkinson’s disease can be diagnosed from changes in the retina. Currently, several studies prove that damage to the brain can be observed through the eyes .
“The most important finding was that a brain disease was diagnosed with a simple eye image. The diagnosis can be made in less than a minute and the equipment costs much lower than a computed tomography or magnetic resonance imaging ”, says Maximillian Diaz, the researcher in charge.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly, by applying machine learning techniques to the artificial intelligence system used in the retinal scan, scientists can diagnose Parkinson’s disease faster, more assertively, cheaply and accessibly.
Early detection, even before the first symptoms, allows the treatment to start as soon as possible and provide the patient more life-quality.
The results of the research can also help in a better understanding of the disease in the search for a cure and in ways to slow the evolution.
In addition, the researchers say the new artificial intelligence tool can be used to identify other diseases that damage the brain, such as Alzheimer’s disease and multiple sclerosis.
Follow the main researches related to the eyes on Phelcom’s blog.
Phelcom Eyer is one winner of the renowned World Summit Awards (WSA) 2020, in the category Health & Well-Being. The global award recognizes the digital innovation that contributes to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGS). On the whole, this edition included 40 solutions from 26 countries.
“We are honored to receive such an importante prize. Such recognition shows that our values and efforts to change the reality of visual health worldwide are aligned to the goals of other people and institutions, such as the UN and the WSA”, states Phelcom CEO, José Augusto Stuchi.
Modern technologies – combined with a social cause and intelligent content – not only solve problems but also increase the quality, the access to information and inclusion. “The challenges this year show, more than ever, how digital means can offer progress and solutions. WSA 2020 winners presented a wonderful showcase of purpose-driven innovation and entrepreneurship”, point out the WSA president, Peter A. Bruck.
Stuchi explains that the goal of developing Eyer is to change the reality of eye healthcare worldwide. Currently, 80% of blindness cases could be avoided, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).
“We may cause a great impact with our solution, because we have a great social appeal to this global reality”. Receiving an award from a renowned institution of the size of WSA, linked to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, makes us very happy, because it shows we are aligned to the institutions we have as mirrors. In addition, it confirms the importance and impact that our solution may cause in the world”, he remarks.
Selection
To take part in the award, Phelcom subscribed Eyer in the Brazilian stage, in the Health & Well-Being category. There are eight categories, each with a single winner. In August, the startup won the local selection and qualified to the world phase, where there are five winners per category. “Competitors are evaluated by an international jury in terms of sustainability, goal, technological and strategic refinement”, says Bruck.
Phelcom will be honored in WSA Global Congress, that occurs from March 22 to 24, 2021, completely online.
Phelcom Eyer
Phelcom Eyer is the first smartdevice on the market that enables to quickly carry out fundus exams with cloud storage.
The equipment works coupled to a smartphone and is non-mydriatic. It has the same quality of a tabletop retinograph. Equipment portability allows it to be easily transported to community task forces in different locations.
Integrated to the cloud, it makes data automatically available on the EyerCloud online platform. So, a doctor located anywhere in the world can diagnose.
Eyer aims to help combat visual impairment and global blindness, which affect 2,2 billion people, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). From this total, 1 billion cases would be avoidable or remediable. That is, they occurred due to lack of access to the necessary care, such as examinations and treatments.
About WSA
WSA was founded in 2003 by Austria as part of the UN World Summit on Information Society. The global initiative recognizes that local digital content contributes to achieve the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDG).
WSA reaches digital entrepreneurs in 182 countries countries around the world and provides a single platform for everyone interested in goal-driven digital innovation. In close cooperation to the United Nation agencies and strategically aligned to the UN SDGs, WSA is a worldwide recognized quality seal for digital innovation.
Cataract is one of the most frequent side effects on patients who undergo macular hole surgery. For some time now, specialists already indicate that multiple surgical procedure to correct the diseases.
Now, the simultaneous treatment of macular hole and cataract has received scientific approval after a study by the University of São Paulo (USP), campus of Ribeirão Preto (SP), which proved the effectiveness of the technique.
Details on research results and the benefits of this approval – for doctors, health institutions, the Brazilian Unified Health System, and the patient – follow below.
The research
Researchers divided 65 patients with macular hole in two groups. The first one, of 33 people, underwent the multiple surgery with both techniques. The other group, with 32 patients, underwent a single procedure of cataract correction after the first surgery.
This is the first prospective study in the world to evaluate the multiple surgeries in a single intervention.
Results
Twenty-seven patients who underwent only the macula correction surgery had cataract afterwards. Because of that, they needed a new surgery in less than one year. In general, they presented significant worsening in vision.
Patients from the first group improved their visual acuity, similar to those who underwent sequential surgery.
The results demonstrate effectiveness of joining both techniques in a single procedure.
Benefits
In most cases, cataract occurs only a few months after the macula surgery. Therefore, the multiple procedure, joining both techniques, is advantageous to doctors, hospitals, the Brazilian Unified Health System and the patient.
Offering a safer treatment, cost and time reduction and less suffering of the patient are some remarkable advantages.
Follow the main healthcare news on Phelcom’s blog.
The search for a cure for diabetes is one of the main aspects of the health research sector. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 422 million people suffer from the disease worldwide. It is also responsible for 1.6 million annual deaths.
Scientists at the University of Alberta, Canada, recently announced that they had discovered a possible solution for the problem. With a new stem cell process the team was able to transform the patient’s own blood into insulin-producing cells. The clinical research was carried out on mice. Learn more about the study, the results and next steps.
Research
Researchers at the University of Alberta in Canada are working with scientists from all around the world on a new stem cell technique.
The study basically turns the blood of patients with type 1 diabetes into insulin-producing cells .
To do this the team adapted the technique of the 2012 Nobel Prize winner in Physiology or Medicine, Shinya Yamanaka, for the treatment of diabetes. Yamanaka discovered how to reprogram skin cells, through the use of hormones and other growth factors, in induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). These could be induced to become any type of cell.
The Canadian researchers took blood samples from patients and treated the cells with a cocktail of hormones and other growth factors to “go back in time” and induce them to become insulin-producing cells. Then, they transplanted into mice with type 1 diabetes.
Results
The new technique achieved a cure for diabetes in mice. If successful blood cell transplantation would overcome the challenges of islet transplantation, such as the need for anti-rejection drugs and lifelong insulin applications. The project leader is physician James Shapiro, who made history 20 years ago with the “Edmonton Protocol“. The procedure places new insulin-producing cells in the patient by transplanting islets harvested from pancreases of organ donors.
However, they have significant side effects, such as an increased risk of cancer and potentially fatal infections.
But this new research believes that using the patient’s own cells should eliminate the problem.
Now the hope is that it will also generate results in humans. However, there is still a long road ahead. Undoubtedly, further evaluations in animals are still needed to demonstrate that the procedure can be possible, safe and effective. Only then should the research test people.
Obstacles
Financing is one of the current biggest obstacles today to continue the work. But in an interview withCTV News Edmonton, Shapiro said there are volunteers working on raising $ 22 million by 2022.
Conclusion
Undoubtedly, if it works, the results of the research can be considered the next major advance in the treatment of diabetes. Even if the technique is successful there is a lot of work to be done in the areas of robotic engineering, artificial intelligence and stem cell science to improve the process and make it less laborious. Mass production of iPSC and personalized medications may occur for the patient to cure diabetes in the future.
Stay in the main news about eye healthcare. Follow the Phelcom’s blog.
Have you ever thought that having an eyer handheld fundus camera in your clinic can be a real advantage?
After all, having quicker access to your patients’ fundus images can assist in early diagnosis, treatment initiation and monitoring various diseases: glaucoma, diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration (AMD).
However, the equipment is expensive. There are models up to BRL 100,000 on the market. In addition to the other devices your business needs, the investment can burden your budget. Even more for professionals beginning their careers. Given that scenario, a new alternative is available: Eyer handheld fundus camera. Connected to a smartphone, the technology captures high-quality images of the fundus and sends them to an online platform. It allows reporting the exam and filing the patients’ history, among other features.
Another advantage is the price: the equipment is up to 4 times cheaper than the conventional handheld fundus camera.
The technology is national and developed by the startup Phelcom Technologies headquartered in the countryside of Sao Paulo.
Next, learn more about Phelcom Eyer handheld fundus camera, its advantages, how the Eyer Cloud platform works and how the device has been used in research projects and social actions.
Phelcom Eyer handheld fundus camera
Released in 2019, Phelcom Eyer is a handheld fundus camera that works coupled to a smartphone with a high-resolution camera. The device captures high-quality images of the fundus, in a few minutes and without the need for pupil dilation. After that, the data is automatically sent to the Eyer Cloud online platform. It allows reporting the exam and storing patients’ history with total data security.
Check out all the features of the Eyer:
High quality
Phelcom’s patented technology allows high quality exams to be performed on a portable device integrated with the smartphone.
Telemedicine
Carried out exams are automatically synchronized with the internet and made available in the cloud, enabling remote diagnosis.
Embedded artificial intelligence
Eyer has intelligent functions to assist medical diagnosis and capture retinal exams.
Connectivity
The device is naturally connected because it is integrated with the smartphone. It eases sharing and accessing exam data in the cloud through the Eyer Cloud system.
Non-mydriatic
Eyers carries out retinal examinations at any location without the need to use eye drops for pupil dilation. It is more comfortable to the patient and provides a faster exam.
Autofocus
With the Autofocus function it is possible to compensate refractive errors in the range of -20D to + 20D. This allows retinal examinations with a high level of details.
Accessible
Eyer allows the democratization of access to retinal examination technology through innovative and more accessible business models.
Easy operation
Any minimally trained healthcare professional can use the equipment to perform high-quality retinal exams in less than 1 minute. It guarantees faster and more accurate diagnoses.
Panoramic
The Eyer generates panoramic exams with a more than 100 degree visual field. The device has internal fixation points that assist capturing and generating panoramics.
Portability
The portable device allows performing exams anywhere with remotely-issued diagnosis. This feature helps in the democratization of health, since 85% of Brazilian cities do not have access to specialists and devices that diagnose eye diseases.
Low cost
Portability and small size allow Eyer to have a much lower cost compared to traditional fundus cameras. Even with cutting-edge technologies applied to the device production.
Recently Phelcom also released a slit lamp holder to allow Eyer attachment to a tabletop. This way, it provides the experience of a tabletop retinograph by easing image capture without movement.
In addition, it helps to maintain social distance in care, since the professional does not need to touch the patient’s forehead as occurs in the traditional exam.
Eyer handheld fundus camera – advantages
Eyer offers state-of-the-art technology which makes the device one of the most modern portable fundus cameras for the prevention and diagnosis of vision-related diseases.
Learn about the advantages of the equipment below:
High-quality eye exam through a smartphone;
Accurate and quick diagnosis;
Lower cost compared to traditional retinographs;
Exams are possible in several locations due to portability;
Democratization of retinal exams, especially in places with low infrastructure of quality services in the area, such as doctors, health professionals, equipment, medicines etc;
Faster service through computerized systems integrated to an online platform with access via computers, smartphones and tablets;
Tests are easy to carry out in clinics and health centers;
Diagnosis made by specialists and reference professionals located anywhere in the world;
Reduction of attendance time and operational costs;
Decrease in the displacement of patients to hospitals and large urban centers;
Improvement in the quality of the reports issued;
Increase in prevention and early diagnosis of diseases such as diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, cataract, macular degeneration, retinoblastoma, retinal detachment, premature retinopathy and blindness, inter alia.
Eyer handheld fundus camera – Eyer Cloud
Eyer Cloudis an online platform integrated with the Phelcom Eyer handheld fundus camera that allows you to store and manage patient exams. All data captured by the equipment is automatically synchronized with the system, allowing them to upload to the cloud with complete security.
Any health professional – without necessarily being a specialist – can carry out the exam in the field after a brief training. With the information available on the web, a doctor from anywhere in the world can diagnose.
In addition to ensuring data backup on a secure server, the user has all data organized in a friendly, functional and intuitive interface. Moreover, the platform can be accessed on the device itself or in a smartphone, tablet and computer.
If there is no internet access at the time of the exam the images are saved on the device and are sent to the cloud as soon as a connection is available.
Eyer handheld fundus camera – social actions
Currently there are several social actions that use the device to bring more health to the whole country.
This is the case of the project “Unidos pelo Diabetes em Ação”, in Itabuna (BA). The event gave rise to the collective task force “Unidos pelo Diabetes”that needed to be cancelled due to the pandemic. On the whole, 400 patients participated in the first phase. 100 of these had more severe diabetic retinopathy or macular edema.
The project used advanced technologies to ensure screening without agglomerations. Eyer was the main screening tool. “Phelcom was fundamental to the success of the project as it made the devices available, provided prior training, helped in the strategy of assembling reports using its Eyer Cloud program and made its team of engineers available for support during the action”, says Andrade. “In addition, in an innovative way in Brazil, it created an artificial intelligence algorithm to help sorting patients who would probably be serious and those without changes, easing the logistics through distance-reporting”, adds Andrade.
Expeditions
The expedition carried out by Barco Hospital São Francisco, in the region of the municipality of Terra Branca (PA),at the end of last year, also featured the Eyer. Ophthalmologist Mariana Lafetá, one of the volunteers on this trip, says that the equipment helped in the diagnosis of diseases such as cataracts, glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy, inter alia.
“It is easy to carry out the exams, take the photos, find them in the files and store them later. We can also send or print the images, which I think is very interesting, in addition to the easy access from anywhere with the internet connection ”, she analyzes. Ophthalmologist Fernando Korn Malerbi also used the Eyer on an expedition to three indigenous communities in the state of Mato Grossoearlier this year. The doctor evaluated 193 Indians. Diabetic retinopathy and cataracts figure among the main diseases found.
“The experience with the equipment was very good, mainly due to portability and ease of use”, he evaluates. He recalls that he has been involved in other projects with the Eyer handheld fundus camera for the diagnosis of diabetic retinopathy. “I believe that the Eyer is very relevant for this type of action, representing an important alternative for tracking populations that live in remote areas”, he concludes.
Do you want to know more about how technology helps with eye exams? Follow the Phelcom’s blog.
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