[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V2BXSWuQO0M[/youtube]
by is a new project developed by a team of researchers from the prestigious American university MIT that helps doctors to discover cataracts using a simple mobile phone. American researchers have succeeded in developing a system composed of an accessory for mobile devices that is capable of detecting the early stages of cataracts. The accessory is attached to the mobile terminal and with the help of special applications it analyzes the data recorded by the accessory and in just a few minutes tells the user whether the scanned person has cataracts or not.
CATRA uses a forward scattering technique, which allows the user to respond to what they visually experience. Our device scans the lens section by section. The user sees our projected patterns and presses a few buttons to map the light attenuation in each section of the eye. This information is collected by the device creating an attenuation map of the entire lens. This allows individuals to monitor the progression of the severity of the cataract. Our maps capture a full point spread function of the lens, allowing us to simulate the visual perception of a cataract affected subject over time. Early cataract onset is difficult to diagnose. We present a device for measuring cataracts, which is highly portable and collects quantifiable data to help tackle a global health problem making it ideal for the developing world.
The device can be used both by doctors and by normal people, so theoretically anyone can self-diagnose at any time. The device would be cheap, accessible to most people, but those from MIT did not specify a possible date for its launch.
