Benny Zee, a scientist from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, demonstrates retinal eye scanning technology used for early detection of autism during an interview with Reuters in Hong Kong, China January 29, 2021. Picture taken January 29, 2021. Reuters
Beijing: A Hong Kong scientist has developed a method to use machine learning and artificial intelligence to scan retinas of children as young as six to detect early autism or the risk of autism and hopes to develop a commercial product this year.
The technology can be used to identify children at risk of autism and get them into treatment programmed sooner, scientists said.
Scientists hope that the technology can be developed into a commercial product to combat autism during the current year 2021.
Retinal eye scanning can help to improve early detection and treatment outcomes for children, said Benny Zee, a professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.
"The importance of starting early intervention is that they are still growing, they are still developing. So there is a bigger chance of success," Zee said.
His method uses a high-resolution camera with new computer software which analyses a combination of factors including fiber layers and blood vessels in the eye.
The technology can be used to identify children at risk of autism and get them into treatment programmed sooner, said Zee.
Seventy children were tested using the technology, 46 with autism and a control group of 24. The technology was able to identify the children with autism 95.7% of the time.
The average age tested was 13, with the youngest being six. (QNA)
