A novel AI tool could transform screening for patients taking hydroxychloroquine by spotting early signs of eye damage, according to a study published in Ophthalmology Retina.
Researchers have devised an artificial intelligence (AI) system that can detect and predict serious eye damage caused by a common autoimmune medication years before patients or doctors notice any symptoms or warning signs. On average, the system flagged patients who would develop retinopathy two and half years before doctors made the diagnosis.
The research algorithm could change how millions of people taking hydroxychloroquine are monitored for a potentially blinding side effect that currently affects up to 7.5% of users. Hydroxychloroquine is prescribed to treat rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and other autoimmune conditions. But it can cause irreversible damage to the retina – hydroxychloroquine retinopathy typically develops after years of use of the drug and can lead to permanent vision loss if not caught early.
The AI tool was developed by a team at Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and University College London (UCL) Institute of Ophthalmology, using data from Moorfields and other eye centers in the UK and US. Trained on over 8,000 eye scans from 409 patients in the US and UK, the algorithm, called HCQuery, can analyze retinal images captured by optical coherence tomography (OCT). The algorithm correctly identified 100% of patients with retinopathy, up to 2.74 years earlier than doctors, achieving 91% accuracy in ruling out patients without the condition.
The researchers now plan to investigate how the algorithm performs in a real-world setting, exploring how the current care pathway can be optimized for earlier detection of hydroxychloroquine retinopathy.
Researchers have devised an artificial intelligence (AI) system that can detect and predict serious eye damage caused by a common autoimmune medication years before patients or doctors notice any symptoms or warning signs. On average, the system flagged patients who would develop retinopathy two and half years before doctors made the diagnosis.
The research algorithm could change how millions of people taking hydroxychloroquine are monitored for a potentially blinding side effect that currently affects up to 7.5% of users. Hydroxychloroquine is prescribed to treat rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and other autoimmune conditions. But it can cause irreversible damage to the retina – hydroxychloroquine retinopathy typically develops after years of use of the drug and can lead to permanent vision loss if not caught early.
The AI tool was developed by a team at Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust and University College London (UCL) Institute of Ophthalmology, using data from Moorfields and other eye centers in the UK and US. Trained on over 8,000 eye scans from 409 patients in the US and UK, the algorithm, called HCQuery, can analyze retinal images captured by optical coherence tomography (OCT). The algorithm correctly identified 100% of patients with retinopathy, up to 2.74 years earlier than doctors, achieving 91% accuracy in ruling out patients without the condition.
The researchers now plan to investigate how the algorithm performs in a real-world setting, exploring how the current care pathway can be optimized for earlier detection of hydroxychloroquine retinopathy.
