An artificial intelligence (AI) deep learning model developed by researchers from Taiwan, Japan and the UK is capable of diagnosing Parkinson’s disease at the same success rate as human movement disorder specialists.
Since the discovery of Parkinson’s two centuries ago, physicians have relied on their eyesight to detect the disease’s telltale signs: tremors, a shuffling gait and slow and stiff movement, China Medicine University Hsinchu Hospital neurologist Chen Jui-cheng (陳睿正) said on Monday.
As these symptom are similar to the impairments associated with other ailments, such as joint issues and strokes, movement disorder specialists are relied upon to diagnose the disease, he said.
Photo: Liao Hsueh-ju, Taipei Times
However, humans are limited by geography and time, causing delays that patients and their families cannot afford, he said.
Researchers from China Medicine University, National Tsing Hua University, the University of London and the University of Tokyo worked together to solve this problem, Chen said.
Using deep learning, the teams built an image recognition AI that taught itself to identify the symptoms of Parkinson’s with 30,000 archived video files and specialists’ diagnoses, he said.
Since the beginning of this year, the machine correctly identified 80 percent of the 109 cases it was presented, becoming the first automated program to approximate the performance of human experts, he said.
The program is capable of instantaneously generating a diagnostic reported based on videos recorded on smartphones of people performing motor function tests, Chen said, adding that it is a valuable resource for people in medically underserved areas.
The prevalence rate of the disease has increased in Taiwan over the past 30 years to about 40,000 people, likely driven by unknown environmental factors, he said.
Treatment options include medication, surgery and focused ultrasounds that have recently been accepted by regulators in the US and Japan, Chen added.
The team presented its findings at the annual conference of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers in Medicine and Biology and is to be published next year by the institute’s official publication, the Open Journal of Engineering in Medicine and Biology.
The Ministry of Education (MOE) is to launch a new program to encourage international students to stay in Taiwan and explore job opportunities here after graduation, Deputy Minister of Education Yeh Ping-cheng (葉丙成) said on Friday. The government would provide full scholarships for international students to further their studies for two years in Taiwan, so those who want to pursue a master’s degree can consider applying for the program, he said. The fields included are science, technology, engineering, mathematics, semiconductors and finance, Yeh added. The program, called “Intense 2+2,” would also assist international students who completed the two years of further studies in
Former president Tsai Ing-wen (蔡英文) departed for Europe on Friday night, with planned stops in Lithuania and Denmark. Tsai arrived at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday night, but did not speak to reporters before departing. Tsai wrote on social media later that the purpose of the trip was to reaffirm the commitment of Taiwanese to working with democratic allies to promote regional security and stability, upholding freedom and democracy, and defending their homeland. She also expressed hope that through joint efforts, Taiwan and Europe would continue to be partners building up economic resilience on the global stage. The former president was to first
Taiwan will now have four additional national holidays after the Legislative Yuan passed an amendment today, which also made Labor Day a national holiday for all sectors. The Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) and Taiwan People’s Party (TPP) used their majority in the Legislative Yuan to pass the amendment to the Act on Implementing Memorial Days and State Holidays (紀念日及節日實施辦法), which the parties jointly proposed, in its third and final reading today. The legislature passed the bill to amend the act, which is currently enforced administratively, raising it to the legal level. The new legislation recognizes Confucius’ birthday on Sept. 28, the
MORE NEEDED: Recall drives against legislators in Miaoli’s two districts and Hsinchu’s second district were still a few thousand signatures short of the second-stage threshold Campaigners aiming to recall Chinese Nationalist Party (KMT) legislators yesterday said they expect success in 30 out of 35 districts where drives have passed the second-stage threshold, which would mark a record number of recall votes held at once. Hsinchu County recall campaigners yesterday announced that they reached the second-stage threshold in the recall effort against Legislator Lin Szu-ming (林思銘). A total of 26,414 signatures have been gathered over the past two months, surpassing the 10 percent threshold of 23,287 in Hsinchu County’s second electoral district, chief campaigner Hsieh Ting-ting (謝婷婷) said. “Our target is to gather an additional 1,500 signatures to reach
RSS