CHENNAI: As the rising popularity of artificial intelligence (AI) in ophthalmology is fuelled by the ever-increasing clinical “big data” that can be used for algorithm development, the Tamil Nadu e-Governance Agency (TNeGA) is helping tap the technology for the State Health department to fight cataract, which is a major cause of visual impairment worldwide.
Santosh Mishra, chief executive officer of TNeGA, told Express the agency is preparing an application for the TN Blindness Control Society to help identify which stage of cataract patients are in. This will help identify whether one needs surgery, said Mishra. The use of artificial intelligence to fight cataract is low when compared to other major age-related eye diseases, such as diabetic retinopathy, age-related macular degeneration, and glaucoma.
Artificial intelligence will help relieve the problems of the overburdened healthcare system. Currently, the Blindness Control Society doesn’t have enough manpower to help detect the stages of surgery, and is looking to tap AI.Mishra said that within a month, an application will be ready for field trials. The application will help doctors screen more patients.
Currently, AI and machine learning have entered several avenues of modern life, and healthcare is just one of them. Ophthalmology, being a field with a lot of imaging and measurable data, is ideal for application of artificial intelligence. It has been learnt that many technologies that are in the research stage are showing promising results.