Tunisian engineers have developed a portable medical analysis device powered by artificial intelligence that will enable patients to conduct tests and diagnose their health remotely and monitor their health without the need to transfer them to hospitals.
This unique device - which has won a number of innovation awards and is currently being trialled in Canada and the UK - is expected to make a quantum leap in the field of telemedicine.
Innovation story
On the surface, the remote medical analysis device - which was called "LifeBox" and its weight does not exceed 400 grams - is no different from any small-sized electronic device, but it has unique capabilities to conduct medical measurements through a number of sensors associated with it, then Analyze it and send it to the doctor via communication networks.
"It is the result of many years of hard work," says Imad Al-Juwayni, general manager of Highway Innovation - which developed the device - in an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera Net via social media.
The spokesman added, "The idea was launched in 2017, when we created a smart stethoscope that enables the doctor to measure the heart rate remotely. Then this idea developed towards designing an integrated device that allows taking all the measurements the doctor needs from a distance, such as heart rate, temperature and the percentage of oxygen in the blood." ', without the need to move the patient.
According to Al-Juwayni, "the great challenge was to manufacture a compact control device capable of analyzing data that is measured by various means by means of audio, video and other measuring devices, which is what we reached in 2019".
All medical equipment in one device
In turn, Dr. Imad Al-Ramdani, assistant professor of information networks at the University of "Edinburgh Napier" in Scotland, who contributed to supporting the development team, said in an exclusive interview with Al Jazeera Net, "This device is designed to provide the patient with the same equipment used in health institutions, and enables him to take measurements. The necessary medical care himself, and then transferring these data through multimedia communication networks to the direct medical framework of his case.
The device can be connected to a phone or computer, as well as to medical monitoring and sensor devices used by doctors, and it contains sensors that are tools for measuring blood pressure and temperature, with a camera in case of a need for visual diagnosis of the throat, nose and throat, for example, and a smart stethoscope to record heartbeats, in addition to to the electrocardiogram tool.
The user can operate any of these equipment, take measurements and then send them to the doctor, who directs the patient and diagnoses the condition remotely based on the measurements taken in real time.
The device contains powerful medical analysis engines that work with artificial intelligence to support both the patient and the doctor in diagnosing the medical condition and acting quickly, according to the company, and medical data can be stored and archived for a specified period of time either on an internal memory or any cloud storage facility.
wide interest
According to Al-Juweni - who founded the "Highway Innovation" company with his wife, engineer Anja Salama in the Canadian province of Alberta, and has previously developed a number of innovative technical solutions - the device recently obtained a patent and received wide attention in professional and academic circles, and was chosen last year among The most important digital health projects in Canada, which enabled him to obtain funding from the Canadian government.
The device is currently being tested in cooperation with academic and professional partners in Canada and Edinburgh Napier University in Scotland. Where the speed of completion of the analyzes and the accuracy of the data.
The medical analysis "Live Box" was also tested during the Hajj period this year in Madinah in cooperation with the Saudi Red Crescent, and it is currently being tested at Hamad Medical Center in Qatar.
In parallel, the team conducted a wide survey around the world, in which 600 doctors and paramedical staff participated in order to measure their acceptance of the idea of using the device and their interaction with it, and the results were excellent, according to the Tunisian researcher, and the results of the survey will be published soon in a scientific paper.
Jouini hopes that the device will enter the manufacturing stage after the end of the tests, and talks have been held for this purpose with a number of companies, including a Tunisian company.
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technology