A new study reveals that artificial intelligence technology may have the capability to identify genetic disease using a mere image of a patient’s face. According to CNN, “The AI technology, called DeepGestalt, outperformed clinicians in identifying a range of syndromes in three trials and could add significant value in personalized care, according to the study published Monday in the journal Nature Medicine.”
That study informs that 8% of of the world has genetic diseases are marked by key, physical traits that could help doctor’s with early detection and interference. However, despite the benefits of early detection, this technology raises question of whether some patients will be discriminated against by employers due to having pre-existing conditions or developing medical complications.
“While several limitations still need to be addressed to ensure the proposed algorithms are robust in the hospital environment, clinically accurate, and applicable to different age groups and ethnic populations, the potential of AI in healthcare is immense,” said Jorge Cardosa, senior lecturer in artificial medical intelligence at the school of biomedical engineering and imaging sciences at King’s College London.
Peter McOwan, professor of computer science at Queen Mary University of London, expressed in an email to CNN: “This is yet another fantastic potentially life changing application of AI tech. When we see so many negative stories round AI technology it’s good to be reminded of the real benefits it can provide to humanity.”
