Artificial intelligence (AI) is actively used in many industries, including medicine, wellness, and biotechnology. The prospects for using artificial intelligence in healthcare are virtually endless. With AI, it is possible to use portable devices for monitoring health indicators, tools for optimizing the diagnostic process, programs for automating document circulation, increasing the effectiveness of treatment, etc. Also, there are already several inventions and AI applications, which allow the growth of new organs that can sense various tissues and cells of organisms.
How artificial intelligence is used in MedTech in the XXI century
Medtech is the use of gadgets and services in healthcare. This includes devices, applications, information networks that patients and doctors can use. Let’s investigate some of the ways how AI can be used. If you have a problem, related to the automation of your biotech solution, ask about support from a professional Check this site.
Consolidation and processing of patient data
Patient information can be stored in dozens of clinics and medical records. This complicates the collection of anamnesis and diagnosis. Interpretation of analyzes, tests, and images may also not be accurate enough due to the amount of data. Even if the doctor has all the necessary information on hand, he cannot always interpret it correctly and notice every detail on which the lives of patients may depend.
For example, Google’s solution, Deepmind Health, analyzes symptoms and offers multiple ideas of disease. Search queries provide the answers based on millions of pages of scientific information containing even the most obscure diseases. The MedClueRx service analyzes the symptoms and diagnoses the disease and selects the safest and most effective drugs depending on the patient’s characteristics.
Diagnostics
Artificial intelligence systems make it possible to recognize diseases even at an early stage.
1. Platform for X-ray diagnostics. Royal Philips has released the AI Workflow Suite imaging platform, which uses a neural network to integrate radiological data, detect strokes, intracranial bleeding, and cervical spine injuries. The system can also assess emphysema, analyze the concentration of iron and fat in the liver, and examine brain atrophy.
2. Scientists at Pennsylvania’s University have successfully completed early tests of the electronic nose, which is capable of detecting cancer with a probability of about 90%.
The device analyzes blood plasma samples. It was tested on 93 people with malignant and benign tumors and a control group consisting of completely healthy people.
The electronic nose targets VOCs that evaporate quickly under normal conditions. Cancer cells secrete such compounds, and different types of cancer secrete different types of compounds.
To create an electronic nose, scientists had to find reliable relationships between volatile organic compounds and various types of cancer. They did this using neural networks and focused on those types of cancers that are more difficult to detect.
As a result, the device was able to diagnose ovarian cancer using blood plasma with an accuracy of 95%, pancreatic cancer up to 90%. The device spends 20 minutes analyzing each of the samples. Electronic nose is able to detect cancer even in its early stages.
Scientists note that such an invention may allow doctors to abandon the need to carry out tests for oncological diseases by invasive methods, with penetrating injections. This is especially true for the diagnosis of early stages of cancer. Such a test could be done on the basis of a routine blood test, which is part of a сommon physical.
- Zebra Medical Vision and Arterys service eliminate the necessity to go into the microscopic features when scanning a lung or performing an ultrasound of the heart and allow them to focus on contact with sick people.
Such projects with application of AI not only medicians can use, but also sick. Thus, Sophia Genetics, which is a startup, identifies receptivity to certain illnesses with gene information. With AI assistance, medics select diagnostic methods while the sick set their way of life. AI accelerates process modeling, reduces lead times, improves accuracy, and ultimately reduces costs and increases efficiency.
Neural prosthetics
Neuroprosthetics provides artificial means to strengthen the neuro system through induction with electronics to balance for shortages in motor abilities, perception, eyesight, ability to hear, communicate, or sensitive responses. Some instances are brain computer interface – BCI, spinal cord stimulators – SCS, pacemakers, etc.
Although the global cost of upper limb prosthetics is expected to reach $2.5 billion by 2025, flexibility is not enough. To increase the level of control and provide users with true autonomy, researchers have combined neuro-engineering with robotics and AI to automate some of the motor’s power for overall control. New brain-computer interfaces and bionic manipulators provide full control over the user’s movements. Powered by deep learning, the robot arm can respond within 400 milliseconds.
For example, researchers at the National University of Singapore have developed GLASSES waterproof artificial leather that heals itself after damage. It can be used to create soft robots or human-machine interfaces.
Scientists make an artificial material that mimics the water-resistant nature of jellyfish and at the same time reacts to touch. To do this, the researchers mixed an elastic weave with an ionized liquid rich in fluoride and made a gel. Unlike existing hydrogels, such skin can work in seawater and in an alkaline or acidic environment. In this case, the skin can self-repair. Scientists demonstrated the process by cutting the material in half: it regained conductivity after a few minutes and completely fused back after a few days.
GLASSES can conduct current and act as a touchpad. Scientists believe that such artificial leather will be useful for creating robots from materials that are more malleable and flexible than rigid metal. In addition, the researchers suggest that the material they developed will reduce environmental pollution since GLASSES can recover, which means that people will not throw it away.
Medical Drug creation
AI can reduce the development time of such long and expensive processes as vaccine development and subsequent clinical trials of new drugs by several times, analyzing the molecular structures of existing drugs and proposing new ones according to specified requirements. The traditional drug development process takes years, sometimes tens of years, and costs pharmaceutical companies millions of dollars, which then falls on the cost of the drugs.
New technologies give hope that with their help, we will be able to quickly obtain medicines for illnesses that are not amenable to treatment today. For example, Insilico Medicine has created several drug options for treating muscle fibrosis using artificial intelligence. For this task, the algorithms took 21 days, after which the scientists selected the most suitable drug options and then conducted a test on laboratory animals. Thus, it took only a month and a half to select the right medicine.
Process automation
Access management in health care structures is an important part of the process aimed at improving the healthcare quality and improving the health of the population. It is vital to provide prompt and necessary access to the applications used in medical institutions and the data they process. Ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of medical information stored in these applications.
Recently, almost all medical institutions have switched to the electronic form of storing medical records. The use of AI technologies increases the speed of medical care and its quality, reduces administration costs, and generally improves the population’s health.
The range of software implemented in healthcare organizations for medical care and consulting is also expanding. It’s an amazingly convenient tool that gives doctors quick access to medical data from both a stationary computer and a mobile device. Each new IT system gives rise to a sharp surge in requests for the prompt provision of access to it, even if only a part of the medical staff needs it.
Summary
Artificial intelligence is being used in MedTech and healthcare fields is definitely making our life easier. It also significantly affects everyone’s interaction, the perception of information, the purchase of goods and services. AI does what humans do, but more efficiently, quickly, and at a lower cost.
How can you apply artificial intelligence to your business? Contact our specialists for advice. Talk to AI and machine learning developers to find out where and how you can help your company speed up and automate processes and improve the efficiency of your business.
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