If discovered early, diabetic eye disease can be treated before it leads to blindness.
Now Google is developing an Artificial Intelligence diagnostic tool that can be used in a primary care physician's office. The AI tool is capable of rapidly reviewing eye scans and sorting out which patients need treatment for diabetic retinopathy.
Worldwide, about 415 million people are at risk for diabetic retinopathy. In a country such as India, with 70 million diabetics, many patients in rural areas don't have access to specialists. The new AI tool could identify their risk at their physician's office, before they are in danger of losing eyesight.
The Google team hopes diagnosing diabetic eye disease will one day be as easy as taking a temperature.
