Early diagnosis of macular degeneration
New Test Identifies Blindness-causing Disease Three Years Before Symptoms
Svetlana Maslova, Hi-tech+
The new test made it possible to predict the development of age-related macular degeneration (macular degeneration) 36 months before the onset of signs of the disease, the first clinical studies showed. This is a huge period, scientists believe, for which it is possible to carry out treatment that stops irreversible blindness.
Scientists from the UK were engaged in the development of a new technology.
Article by Normando et al. A CNN-aided method to predict glaucoma progression using DARC (Detection of Apoptosing Retinal Cells) is published in the journal Expert Review of Molecular Diagnostics – VM.
Age-related macular degeneration remains the most common cause of irreversible and severe vision loss worldwide. Today, this diagnosis is made already with the development of the first symptoms that a person notices independently. Often, this condition can quickly progress to complete loss of vision.
Twenty years ago, the disease was considered incurable, but now modern therapy preserves the vision of many patients. However, if signs of the disease are detected even earlier, then treatment can be especially effective. This is the goal set by the authors of the new test.
A test called DARC (detection of retinal apoptosis cells – VM) is performed by introducing fluorescent dyes into the bloodstream, which attach to retinal cells and highlight the damaged ones. When examining the eyes, the doctor sees these cells bright white and, assessing their number, can make a prognosis.
Figure from the press release of University College London AI-supported test predicts eye disease three years before symptoms – VM.
To make the testing even more accurate, scientists trained an artificial intelligence algorithm to detect the growth of new blood vessels that corresponded to the damage on the test (abnormal growth of blood vessels is characteristic of the disease). The informative value of the test was assessed on 19 patients who had already received the appropriate diagnosis for one eye. They managed to predict the development of the disease in the second eye three years before the actual symptoms.
Currently, the authors continue to test the effectiveness of the method on a larger sample of patients. Their approach has potential effectiveness in the diagnosis of other eye diseases, so they will also be studied in parallel.
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