Early detection can reduce the damage from diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration -- but that diagnosis can often take time.
Now, MDDI reports, a subsidiary of Google parent company Alphabet Inc. hopes to speed up the process by applying artificial intelligence.
Optical coherence tomography is a noninvasive imaging technique that can produce 3-D scans of the eye and can be used to diagnose both diabetic retinopathy and age-related macular degeneration. But it takes crucial time for professionals to analyze these complex images, and patients’ eyesight can deteriorate while they’re waiting for a diagnosis.
The company has formed a partnership with Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, giving it access to a million eye scans, along with associated information about patients, to find out whether Google DeepMind’s algorithms can be used to analyze the scans and determine whether the patient needs immediate treatment.
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