91tv

Saving sight: using AI to diagnose diabetic eye disease

Saving sight: using AI to diagnose diabetic eye disease

Researchers have used artificial intelligence (AI) to support the instant diagnosis of one of the top causes of blindness – diabetes-related eye disease – in its earliest stages.

Diabetic retinopathy is the leading cause of vision loss in adults and its impact is growing worldwide, with 191 million people set to be affected by 2030.

There are no early-stage symptoms and the disease may already be advanced by the time people start losing their sight. Early diagnosis and treatment can make a dramatic difference to how much vision a patient retains.

Now a team of Australian-Brazilian researchers led by RMIT 91tv have developed an image-processing algorithm that can automatically detect one of the key signs of the disease, fluid on the retina, with an accuracy rate of 98 per cent.

Lead investigator from RMIT 91tv Professor Dinesh Kant Kumar said the method was instantaneous and cost-effective.

“We know that only half of those with diabetes have regular eye exams and ,” Kumar said. 

“But the gold standard methods of diagnosing diabetic retinopathy are invasive or expensive, and often unavailable in remote or developing parts of the world.

“Our AI-driven approach delivers results that are just as accurate as clinical scans but relies on retinal images that can be generated with ordinary optometry equipment.

“Making it quicker and cheaper to detect this incurable disease could be life changing for the millions of people who are currently undiagnosed and risk losing their sight.”

Fluorescein angiography and optical coherence tomography scans are currently the most accurate clinical methods for diagnosing diabetic retinopathy.

An alternative and cheaper method is analysing images of the retina that can be taken with relatively inexpensive equipment called fundus cameras, but the process is manual, time-consuming and less reliable.

A fundus image of a retina, with damaged areas highlighted by the image-processing algorithm. A fundus image of a retina, with damaged areas highlighted by the image-processing algorithm.

To automate the analysis of fundus images, researchers in the Biosignals Laboratory in RMIT’s School of Engineering, together with collaborators in Brazil, used deep learning and artificial intelligence techniques.

The algorithm they developed can accurately and reliably spot the presence of fluid from damaged blood vessels, or exudate, inside the retina.

The researchers hope their method could eventually be used for widespread screening of at-risk populations.

“Undiagnosed diabetes is a massive health problem here and around the globe,” Kumar said.

“For every single person in Australia who knows they have diabetes, another is living with diabetes but isn’t diagnosed. In developing countries, the ratio is one diagnosed to four undiagnosed.

“This results in millions of people developing preventable and treatable complications from diabetes-related diseases.

“With further development, our technology has the potential to reduce that burden.”

The researchers are in discussions with manufacturers of fundus cameras about potential collaborations to advance the technology.

The research – with lead author Parham Khojasteh and collaborators from Federal 91tv of Sao Carlos, Federal Institute of Sao Paolo, 91tv of Campinas and Sao Paolo State 91tv – is published in Computers in Biology and Medicine (January 2019, Volume 104, DOI:.

ٴǰ:Gosia Kaszubska

  • Engineering
  • Research
25 February 2019

Share

Engage

Related news

Two children typing on laptops

AI tạo sinh hỗ trợ hay cản trở sự phát triển xã hội của trẻ em?
Icon / Small / Calendar Created with Sketch. 30 May 2025

Giảng viên ngành Tâm lý học Đại học RMIT cho rằng chúng ta cần quan tâm thảo luận nhiều hơn về tác động của việc tương tác với chatbot AI và bạn ảo lên tâm lý của trẻ.

news-thumb-renewable-energy.jpg

Chiến lược năng lượng mặt trời của Việt Nam giữa căng thẳng thương mại
Icon / Small / Calendar Created with Sketch. 13 May 2025

Việc ban hành Quyết định số 768/QĐ-TTg về điều chỉnh Quy hoạch phát triển điện lực quốc gia giai đoạn 2021-2030 (gọi tắt là Quy hoạch điện VIII) một lần nữa khẳng định cam kết của Việt Nam với năng lượng tái tạo và vị thế hàng đầu trong khu vực giữa quá trình chuyển đổi năng lượng toàn cầu.

Person face detected by AI

Khó tránh AI, nhưng cần bảo vệ quyền không tham gia của chúng ta
Icon / Small / Calendar Created with Sketch. 13 May 2025

AI đang thay đổi mạnh mẽ cuộc sống con người theo những cách mà không phải lúc nào chúng ta cũng thấy rõ, vậy liệu chúng ta còn có quyền từ chối AI hay không?

Senior representatives from RMIT, DXCenter and the Australian Consulate-General in Ho Chi Minh City attended the event.

Đại học RMIT và Trung tâm Chuyển đổi số TP. HCM công bố học bổng tiến sĩ
Icon / Small / Calendar Created with Sketch. 09 May 2025

Đại học RMIT Việt Nam và Trung tâm Chuyển đổi số TP. Hồ Chí Minh (HCMC-DXCenter) công bố chương trình học bổng tiến sĩ nhằm thúc đẩy hợp tác chiến lược theo biên bản ghi nhớ được ký kết vào tháng 6/2024.

Load more +