An AI Program Saves the Life of Man in Israel

A patient at the Galilee Medical Center in Nahariya had his life saved thanks to an AI warning of intracranial bleeding. According to Israel Hayom, the resident of the city is a 50-year-old man who came in for a routine CT scan.

The reason for the scan was due to him complaining of strong headaches for a long period. Normally, the results of the CT scan would take several weeks before becoming available. However, due to an alert by the AI-based program in-house, it warned that the patient may have been experiencing intracranial bleeding.

Once alerted by the AI, doctors rushed to call the man to return to the medical center. Thankfully, the man was nearby and came right back. He was then operated on by staff who found the bleeding, saving his life.

The AI program in question is called Viz.ai. According to the website, it leverages algorithms that are cleared by the FDA to analyze medical imaging data. Data such as CT scans, provide real-time insights for staff and provide automated assessments to help accelerate both treatment and diagnosis.

Interestingly enough, the medical center in Galilee participated in the development of the program via Dr. Dan Paz. The doctor praised the program for in essence, accomplishing its purpose. According to Dr. Paz, in this case, “Without it, the patient would have probably come to us too late.”

The untapped potential in using advanced algorithms to detect patterns that normally are difficult or impossible for humans to find isn’t new. Last year, we reported on a research team out of Singapore that hopes to use advanced machine learning algorithms, and data sets to help detect early onsets of mental health diseases when they’re easier to treat.

A similar technique is being used, which uses a patient’s breathing patterns while asleep to detect the risks of Parkinson’s Disease. These are just a few examples, but it’s clear major advancements in medicine are coming thanks to research in AI.