Scientists have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model that they say can distinguish asymptomatic COVID-19 patients from healthy individuals through their cough recordings, and show the results on a smartphone app.

Researchers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US found that people who are asymptomatic may differ from healthy individuals in the way that they cough.

These differences are not decipherable to the human ear, but can be picked up by artificial intelligence, they said.

In a paper published in the IEEE Journal of Engineering in Medicine and Biology, the team described on an AI model that distinguishes asymptomatic people from healthy individuals through forced-cough recordings.

These recordings were submitted by people voluntarily through web browsers and devices such as cellphones and laptops, they said.

The researchers trained the model on tens of thousands of samples of coughs, as well as spoken words.

When they fed the model new cough recordings, it accurately identified 98.5 per cent of coughs from people who were confirmed to have COVID-19.

This included 100 per cent of coughs from asymptomatics -- who reported they did not have symptoms but had tested positive for the virus, according to the researchers.

The team is working on incorporating the model into a user-friendly app, which if approved and adopted on a large scale could potentially be a free, convenient, noninvasive pre-screening tool to identify people who are likely to be asymptomatic for COVID-19, the researchers said.

A user could log in daily, cough into their phone, and instantly get information on whether they might be infected and therefore should confirm with a formal test.

"The effective implementation of this group diagnostic tool could diminish the spread of the pandemic if everyone uses it before going to a classroom, a factory, or a restaurant," said Brian Subirana, a research scientist in MIT's Auto-ID Laboratory.

Prior to the pandemic's onset, research groups already had been training algorithms on cellphone recordings of coughs to accurately diagnose conditions such as pneumonia and asthma.

Similarly, the MIT team was developing AI models to analyse forced-cough recordings to see if they could detect signs of Alzheimer's, a disease associated with not only memory decline but also neuromuscular degradation such as weakened vocal cords.

In April, the team set out to collect as many recordings of coughs as they could, including those from COVID-19 patients.

They established a website where people can record a series of coughs, through a cellphone or other web-enabled device.

Participants also fill out a survey of symptoms they are experiencing, whether or not they have COVID-19, and whether they were diagnosed through an official test, by a doctor's assessment of their symptoms, or if they self-diagnosed.

They also can note their gender, geographical location, and native language.

To date, the researchers have collected more than 70,000 recordings, each containing several coughs, amounting to some 200,000 forced-cough audio samples, which Subirana said is "the largest research cough dataset that we know of."

The team used the 2,500 COVID-associated recordings, along with 2,500 more recordings that they randomly selected from the collection to balance the dataset.

They used 4,000 of these samples to train the AI model. The remaining 1,000 recordings were then fed into the model to see if it could accurately discern coughs from COVID patients versus healthy individuals.

The researchers were able to pick up patterns in the four biomarkers -- vocal cord strength, sentiment, lung and respiratory performance, and muscular degradation -- that are specific to COVID-19.

The model identified 98.5 per cent of coughs from people confirmed with COVID-19, and of those, it accurately detected all of the asymptomatic coughs.

"We think this shows that the way you produce sound, changes when you have COVID, even if you are asymptomatic," Subirana said.

Scientists have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model that they say can distinguish asymptomatic COVID-19 patients from healthy individuals through their cough recordings, and show the results on a smartphone app.

Scientists have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model that they say can distinguish asymptomatic COVID-19 patients from healthy individuals through their cough recordings, and show the results on a smartphone app. Researchers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in the US found that people who are asymptomatic may differ from healthy individuals in the way that they cough. These differences are not decipherable to the human ear, but can be picked up by artificial intelligence, they said. In a paper published in the IEEE Journal of Engineering in Medicine and Biology, the team described on an AI model that distinguishes asymptomatic people from healthy individuals through forced-cough recordings. These recordings were submitted by people voluntarily through web browsers and devices such as cellphones and laptops, they said. The researchers trained the model on tens of thousands of samples of coughs, as well as spoken words. When they fed the model new cough recordings, it accurately identified 98.5 per cent of coughs from people who were confirmed to have COVID-19. This included 100 per cent of coughs from asymptomatics -- who reported they did not have symptoms but had tested positive for the virus, according to the researchers. The team is working on incorporating the model into a user-friendly app, which if approved and adopted on a large scale could potentially be a free, convenient, noninvasive pre-screening tool to identify people who are likely to be asymptomatic for COVID-19, the researchers said. A user could log in daily, cough into their phone, and instantly get information on whether they might be infected and therefore should confirm with a formal test. "The effective implementation of this group diagnostic tool could diminish the spread of the pandemic if everyone uses it before going to a classroom, a factory, or a restaurant," said Brian Subirana, a research scientist in MIT's Auto-ID Laboratory. Prior to the pandemic's onset, research groups already had been training algorithms on cellphone recordings of coughs to accurately diagnose conditions such as pneumonia and asthma. Similarly, the MIT team was developing AI models to analyse forced-cough recordings to see if they could detect signs of Alzheimer's, a disease associated with not only memory decline but also neuromuscular degradation such as weakened vocal cords. In April, the team set out to collect as many recordings of coughs as they could, including those from COVID-19 patients. They established a website where people can record a series of coughs, through a cellphone or other web-enabled device. Participants also fill out a survey of symptoms they are experiencing, whether or not they have COVID-19, and whether they were diagnosed through an official test, by a doctor's assessment of their symptoms, or if they self-diagnosed. They also can note their gender, geographical location, and native language. To date, the researchers have collected more than 70,000 recordings, each containing several coughs, amounting to some 200,000 forced-cough audio samples, which Subirana said is "the largest research cough dataset that we know of." The team used the 2,500 COVID-associated recordings, along with 2,500 more recordings that they randomly selected from the collection to balance the dataset. They used 4,000 of these samples to train the AI model. The remaining 1,000 recordings were then fed into the model to see if it could accurately discern coughs from COVID patients versus healthy individuals. The researchers were able to pick up patterns in the four biomarkers -- vocal cord strength, sentiment, lung and respiratory performance, and muscular degradation -- that are specific to COVID-19. The model identified 98.5 per cent of coughs from people confirmed with COVID-19, and of those, it accurately detected all of the asymptomatic coughs. "We think this shows that the way you produce sound, changes when you have COVID, even if you are asymptomatic," Subirana said.

This app can detect asymptomatic COVID-19 cases, scientists say

Ultra-wideband measures the time the signal takes to travel from one distancer to another and back again. This is a very, very, very precise measuring method.

German device makes social distancing amid COVID-19 high-tech

A team of researchers in Chennai’s NHHID have come up with a Bluetooth-based thermometer that can not only detect fever but also communicate with a smartphone App and share the location.

It is meant to aid authorities in identifying and isolating clusters of cases where fever is prevalent. After development, prototyping, and preliminary testing, the initial batch of 1000 thermometers will be&nbsp;manufactured.&nbsp;

“With increasing <a href="https://www.wionews.com/india-news/two-recovered-covid-19-patients-donate-plasma-in-lucknow-298214">COVID-19 </a>cases the door-to-door screening campaigns become less practical and that’s where the smart thermometer comes into play. We can monitor the temperature of individuals and plan for further measures without any external help. On switching it on, it gets linked to the phone’s Bluetooth and the location will also show up on the App. Just like any thermometer, one can self-examine and the results would show on the smartphone, and if&nbsp;in case there is a fever the data and location is sent to the server” Dr. Senthilvelan an Orthopedic Surgeon who is behind this concept told WION.&nbsp;

The team of eight developers at Chennai’s National Hub for Healthcare Instrumentation Development, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University(NHHID) have partnered with a Bengaluru-based firm Triphase technology for the manufacturing, following which extensive filed trials would be conducted.

According to the developers, the utility of this product must be seen even beyond the current COVID-19 situation, as there have always been such infections that result in fever as one of the major symptoms.

Dr. Senthilvelan added that this specific prototype could have been in the form of a watch or a bracelet or a necklace, but it was a conscious decision to shape it like a thermometer and recommend that the temperature be recorded from the axilla (armpit) due to the variations in skin temperature at different parts of the body.

“COVID-19 has changed our lifestyle&nbsp;and the future will become more online-oriented. We see this as an opportunity to enhance digitization in biomedical gadgets and develop apps for them as well. The patient can monitor the temperature and the doctor can consult based on the available information, while being far apart. We are also working on another bio-medical device prototype that can monitor vital signs and share the data to the server, thus enabling near-live consultancy” Prof S.Muttan, Coordinator, NHHID, Anna University told WION.&nbsp;

This development gains significance as states in India are recommending home-quarantine of asymptomatic COVID-19 positive patients, for optimal utilization of hospital beds for the critical patients.

With the all-India COVID-19 figures surpassing the 70,000-mark and most densely populated cities being among the worst hit, the fever tracker could prove to be a tool that enables more centralized, app-based fever tracking among users.

The current version of the thermometer is dependent on smartphones and the App is supported on both major mobile platforms, the developers said.

Prof Sankaran , Professor of Eminence, Anna University believes that internet-of-things concepts can be integrated with medical technology, it would go a long way in studying, identifying disease control measures.

“Since all major diseases are accompanied by a fever, the pattern can be used to understand the doctors can decide what fever pattern corresponds to which disease. While the initial unit cost is Rs.350, mass manufacturing can bring down the unit cost to about Rs.100-150. For the cost of the normal thermometer we hope to provide a remote temperature monitoring tool for households” he said.

A team of researchers in Chennai’s NHHID have come up with a Bluetooth-based thermometer that can not only detect fever but also communicate with a smartphone App and share the location.

A team of researchers in Chennai’s NHHID have come up with a Bluetooth-based thermometer that can not only detect fever but also communicate with a smartphone App and share the location. It is meant to aid authorities in identifying and isolating clusters of cases where fever is prevalent. After development, prototyping, and preliminary testing, the initial batch of 1000 thermometers will be manufactured. “With increasing COVID-19 cases the door-to-door screening campaigns become less practical and that’s where the smart thermometer comes into play. We can monitor the temperature of individuals and plan for further measures without any external help. On switching it on, it gets linked to the phone’s Bluetooth and the location will also show up on the App. Just like any thermometer, one can self-examine and the results would show on the smartphone, and if in case there is a fever the data and location is sent to the server” Dr. Senthilvelan an Orthopedic Surgeon who is behind this concept told WION. The team of eight developers at Chennai’s National Hub for Healthcare Instrumentation Development, Centre for Biotechnology, Anna University(NHHID) have partnered with a Bengaluru-based firm Triphase technology for the manufacturing, following which extensive filed trials would be conducted. According to the developers, the utility of this product must be seen even beyond the current COVID-19 situation, as there have always been such infections that result in fever as one of the major symptoms. Dr. Senthilvelan added that this specific prototype could have been in the form of a watch or a bracelet or a necklace, but it was a conscious decision to shape it like a thermometer and recommend that the temperature be recorded from the axilla (armpit) due to the variations in skin temperature at different parts of the body. “COVID-19 has changed our lifestyle and the future will become more online-oriented. We see this as an opportunity to enhance digitization in biomedical gadgets and develop apps for them as well. The patient can monitor the temperature and the doctor can consult based on the available information, while being far apart. We are also working on another bio-medical device prototype that can monitor vital signs and share the data to the server, thus enabling near-live consultancy” Prof S.Muttan, Coordinator, NHHID, Anna University told WION. This development gains significance as states in India are recommending home-quarantine of asymptomatic COVID-19 positive patients, for optimal utilization of hospital beds for the critical patients. With the all-India COVID-19 figures surpassing the 70,000-mark and most densely populated cities being among the worst hit, the fever tracker could prove to be a tool that enables more centralized, app-based fever tracking among users. The current version of the thermometer is dependent on smartphones and the App is supported on both major mobile platforms, the developers said. Prof Sankaran , Professor of Eminence, Anna University believes that internet-of-things concepts can be integrated with medical technology, it would go a long way in studying, identifying disease control measures. “Since all major diseases are accompanied by a fever, the pattern can be used to understand the doctors can decide what fever pattern corresponds to which disease. While the initial unit cost is Rs.350, mass manufacturing can bring down the unit cost to about Rs.100-150. For the cost of the normal thermometer we hope to provide a remote temperature monitoring tool for households” he said.

COVID-19: Researchers develop Bluetooth-based thermometer for fever monitoring

With the COVID-19 pandemic showing no signs of slowing the governments across the globe are using mobile technology to trace people who thought to have COVID-19. But how do these tracing apps work? Watch WION report.

Use of apps to contain the spread of COVID-19 | Coronavirus Pandemic

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This app can detect asymptomatic COVID-19 cases, scientists say

German device makes social distancing amid COVID-19 high-tech

COVID-19: Researchers develop Bluetooth-based thermometer for fever monitoring

Use of apps to contain the spread of COVID-19 | Coronavirus Pandemic