Smart technology that uses electronic games to combat mental illness

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Smart technology that uses electronic games to combat mental illness The number of people suffering from depression in the world is more than 300 million, or 4.4% of the world's population, according to recently published statistics of the World Health Organization (WHO). By 2030, depression and mental illness are expected to overtake heart disease, to become the world's largest health concern. Among the most important factors increasing these diseases are: economic problems such as debt and unemployment, and social problems such as domestic violence and the pressures of living in cities, in addition to wars, environmental degradation and disasters. A robot playing basketball and another superior in table tennis How will artificial intelligence change sports? Demographics change will also play a role, especially with regard to age. According to the World Health Organization, the proportion of people aged 60 and over will double to two billion people in 2050, and about 20% of these will suffer from dementia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and others. The question that arises is: What role can technology, artificial intelligence, machine learning and all the outputs of the Fourth Industrial Revolution play in addressing this expanding problem day by day? New technology inspired by video games In an initial answer to this question, scientists in the British capital, London, have developed a new artificial intelligence technology inspired by video games, to change the way depression is diagnosed and accurately monitored. The platform called Thymia is currently being trialled by patients and clinicians, with the goal of making depression and other mental health conditions as measurable as other physical illnesses. Developed by neuroscientist Dr. Emilia Molympakis and theoretical physicist Dr. Stefano Gurria, the technology will eliminate thymia from previous diagnostic methods. Instead of answering questionnaires in the traditional methods of control and diagnostics, will play sick video games on the platform used neuropsychology and linguistics , machine learning, early detection of the signs of depression, as well as monitor whether patients respond to treatment, so as mentioned site "Med Tech News" (med-technews) in a recent report. The scientists behind this new technology hope it will enable clinicians to make faster and more accurate clinical decisions by making mental illness as objectively measurable as other physical health conditions. Themia recently raised $1.1 million in investment to help expand its clinical trials and make the platform available to patients across the UK. The idea for Themia came after a close friend of Dr. Emilia Molympakis became depressed, as traditional depression assessment methods failed to diagnose her condition and the extent of her suffering, eventually culminating in a suicide attempt. This bitter experience led Dr. Molympakis to leverage her understanding of linguistics, cognitive neuroscience and experimental psychology, to build a platform that could complement and eventually replace traditional questionnaire-based diagnostic methods for diagnosing depression. The Themia program provides clinicians with a faster and more accurate tool for assessing and monitoring cases of major depression, the report said. Artificial intelligence is replacing old methods of diagnosis Dr. Emilia Molympakis and colleague Dr. Stefano Gurria, an expert in multimodal artificial intelligence, have created smart, interactive video game-style activities for patients that test many hidden cues of depression, including verbal descriptions of animated scenes and memorial games for moving objects. As patients and users complete the games, Themia analyzes 3 main types of data: Voice : How and what a person says, with the goal of picking up depressive vocal and language cues. Video : Observe minute expressions and eye gaze that can help track a person's mood. Behavioral measures, including reaction times, memory status, and error rates that can help reveal the severity of depression. The software identifies data patterns that indicate depression, to help make a diagnosis faster and more accurate, and it will also show whether treatments and medications are working over time. The platform allows clinicians to continuously and remotely monitor patients at home in the weeks between in-person appointments, which will help clinicians and patients build an in-depth understanding of their condition over time. The platform collects data from thousands of people with major depressive disorder and compares it to a standard group without a condition, with the aim of training the AI ​​to make a comprehensive ethical diagnosis, away from racial, gender and age biases, to make their assessments as accurate and objective as possible. Themia has established collaborations and partnerships with several UK research institutes, to help extend the use of this technology to other mental disorders. Scientists are already looking to apply the technology to conditions including Alzheimer's disease, dementia, Parkinson's disease, anxiety, ADHD and autism. Psychiatry enters the 21st century "Thymia was born when a close friend of mine attempted suicide. Her friends and doctors missed the signs that she was seriously ill, not least because the process of accessing the right treatment was based on outdated methodologies," Dr. Emilia Molympakis told MedTech News. Not suitable for the complexities and nuances of a serious and ill-defined illness such as depression." Molympakis adds that "depression is a huge and ever-growing health, social and economic problem, which is a major cause of disability and suicide, and costs the national economy billions annually, and the new Corona virus (Covid-19) has further complicated the problem, and unleashed the disease until it became like a tsunami storm due to quarantine." social isolation, job loss, bereavement and grief. From January to March 2021, the UK Office for National Statistics found that 21% of UK adults reported symptoms of depression, twice as much as in the pre-pandemic period." "However, clinicians and psychiatrists use the same diagnostic questionnaires that have been around since the 1960s. Rating how sad you feel on a scale from 0 to 3 simply isn't enough to capture the nuances of early signs of depression, nor does it succeed in tracking the complexities of the disease," Molympakis explained. The mental illness is constantly ongoing, and before thymia doctors had no other choice, and this meant that many cases were not diagnosed at all, or were misdiagnosed, and as a result of all this many patients were waiting for years before finding the appropriate treatment.” Dr. Emilia Molympakis stresses that “With Themia, psychiatry is entering the 21st century through an artificial intelligence-enabled platform for accurate and continuous monitoring of patients. It is the first objective psychological assessment system, combining multiple layers of rich physiological data to assess depression and distinguish between similar disorders. It will work Our technology enables clinicians to assess and treat depression sooner, while allowing patients to develop a deeper understanding of their own condition.Over time, our goal is to assess and diagnose all mental health disorders, and show that mental illness is as real and objectively measurable as physical illness, Thus also helping to eliminate the stigma associated with it.”

Smart technology that uses electronic games to combat mental illness


The number of people suffering from depression in the world is more than 300 million, or 4.4% of the world's population, according to recently published statistics of the World Health Organization (WHO).

By 2030, depression and mental illness are expected to overtake heart disease, to become the world's largest health concern. Among the most important factors increasing these diseases are: economic problems such as debt and unemployment, and social problems such as domestic violence and the pressures of living in cities, in addition to wars, environmental degradation and disasters.

A robot playing basketball and another superior in table tennis How will artificial intelligence change sports?
Demographics change will also play a role, especially with regard to age. According to the World Health Organization, the proportion of people aged 60 and over will double to two billion people in 2050, and about 20% of these will suffer from dementia, Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and others.

The question that arises is: What role can technology, artificial intelligence, machine learning and all the outputs of the Fourth Industrial Revolution play in addressing this expanding problem day by day?

New technology inspired by video games
In an initial answer to this question, scientists in the British capital, London, have developed a new artificial intelligence technology inspired by video games, to change the way depression is diagnosed and accurately monitored. The platform called Thymia is currently being trialled by patients and clinicians, with the goal of making depression and other mental health conditions as measurable as other physical illnesses.

Developed by neuroscientist Dr. Emilia Molympakis and theoretical physicist Dr. Stefano Gurria, the technology will eliminate thymia from previous diagnostic methods. Instead of answering questionnaires in the traditional methods of control and diagnostics, will play sick video games on the platform used neuropsychology and linguistics , machine learning, early detection of the signs of depression, as well as monitor whether patients respond to treatment, so as mentioned site "Med Tech News" (med-technews) in a recent report.

The scientists behind this new technology hope it will enable clinicians to make faster and more accurate clinical decisions by making mental illness as objectively measurable as other physical health conditions.

Themia recently raised $1.1 million in investment to help expand its clinical trials and make the platform available to patients across the UK.

The idea for Themia came after a close friend of Dr. Emilia Molympakis became depressed, as traditional depression assessment methods failed to diagnose her condition and the extent of her suffering, eventually culminating in a suicide attempt.

This bitter experience led Dr. Molympakis to leverage her understanding of linguistics, cognitive neuroscience and experimental psychology, to build a platform that could complement and eventually replace traditional questionnaire-based diagnostic methods for diagnosing depression. The Themia program provides clinicians with a faster and more accurate tool for assessing and monitoring cases of major depression, the report said.

Artificial intelligence is replacing old methods of diagnosis
Dr. Emilia Molympakis and colleague Dr. Stefano Gurria, an expert in multimodal artificial intelligence, have created smart, interactive video game-style activities for patients that test many hidden cues of depression, including verbal descriptions of animated scenes and memorial games for moving objects. As patients and users complete the games, Themia analyzes 3 main types of data:

Voice : How and what a person says, with the goal of picking up depressive vocal and language cues.
Video : Observe minute expressions and eye gaze that can help track a person's mood.
Behavioral measures, including reaction times, memory status, and error rates that can help reveal the severity of depression.
The software identifies data patterns that indicate depression, to help make a diagnosis faster and more accurate, and it will also show whether treatments and medications are working over time.

The platform allows clinicians to continuously and remotely monitor patients at home in the weeks between in-person appointments, which will help clinicians and patients build an in-depth understanding of their condition over time.

The platform collects data from thousands of people with major depressive disorder and compares it to a standard group without a condition, with the aim of training the AI ​​to make a comprehensive ethical diagnosis, away from racial, gender and age biases, to make their assessments as accurate and objective as possible.

Themia has established collaborations and partnerships with several UK research institutes, to help extend the use of this technology to other mental disorders. Scientists are already looking to apply the technology to conditions including Alzheimer's disease, dementia, Parkinson's disease, anxiety, ADHD and autism.

Psychiatry enters the 21st century
"Thymia was born when a close friend of mine attempted suicide. Her friends and doctors missed the signs that she was seriously ill, not least because the process of accessing the right treatment was based on outdated methodologies," Dr. Emilia Molympakis told MedTech News. Not suitable for the complexities and nuances of a serious and ill-defined illness such as depression."

Molympakis adds that "depression is a huge and ever-growing health, social and economic problem, which is a major cause of disability and suicide, and costs the national economy billions annually, and the new Corona virus (Covid-19) has further complicated the problem, and unleashed the disease until it became like a tsunami storm due to quarantine." social isolation, job loss, bereavement and grief. From January to March 2021, the UK Office for National Statistics found that 21% of UK adults reported symptoms of depression, twice as much as in the pre-pandemic period."

"However, clinicians and psychiatrists use the same diagnostic questionnaires that have been around since the 1960s. Rating how sad you feel on a scale from 0 to 3 simply isn't enough to capture the nuances of early signs of depression, nor does it succeed in tracking the complexities of the disease," Molympakis explained. The mental illness is constantly ongoing, and before thymia doctors had no other choice, and this meant that many cases were not diagnosed at all, or were misdiagnosed, and as a result of all this many patients were waiting for years before finding the appropriate treatment.”

Dr. Emilia Molympakis stresses that “With Themia, psychiatry is entering the 21st century through an artificial intelligence-enabled platform for accurate and continuous monitoring of patients. It is the first objective psychological assessment system, combining multiple layers of rich physiological data to assess depression and distinguish between similar disorders. It will work Our technology enables clinicians to assess and treat depression sooner, while allowing patients to develop a deeper understanding of their own condition.Over time, our goal is to assess and diagnose all mental health disorders, and show that mental illness is as real and objectively measurable as physical illness, Thus also helping to eliminate the stigma associated with it.”
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