GPs, practice nurses and pharmacists in Oxford are the first to pilot a new AI-powered assessment technique that could identify patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), cutting down on waiting lists for traditional COPD testing.
The traditional test used to detect COPD is spirometry, however, this test is currently in short supply across the UK. healthcare company TidalSense New technology has been launched using artificial intelligence (AI) to assess COPD, which could result in faster, more accurate diagnosis.
The N-Tidal device is a high-resolution carbon dioxide sensor. This is coupled with an AI platform to measure changes in lung function that may point to the condition. The device can diagnose COPD quickly – it takes less than five minutes from breath to result.
It will be tested on 600 patients with suspected or confirmed COPD over a 12-week period by health professionals in Oxford. Where possible the results of the N-Tidal device will be compared with existing spirometry tests.
Dr Helen Ashdown, GP Clinical Lecturer, Nuffield Department Primary Care Health Sciences, University of Oxford, said: “This potentially groundbreaking medical device may enable clinicians to provide a faster and more accurate assessment of patients’ lung function .
“Early intervention is key to effectively managing COPD and, with the N-Tidal device, we have the potential to transform the way we diagnose and manage this chronic respiratory condition, thereby improving and improving patient outcomes.” Can be taken care of.”
The trial is part of a collaboration with the Healthier Oxford City Network, a primary care network comprising four practices.
Clinical studies have already demonstrated that Technology may provide greater than 91% accuracy in diagnosing severe COPD By recording a single breath. Working in collaboration with researchers – including academics from the Nuffield Department of Primary Care Health Sciences at the University of Oxford, the technology is set to replace spirometry in some NHS diagnostic clinical pathways and move towards an automated diagnostic test.
Dr Amira Patel, CEO of Tidalsense, said: “Clinical pathways continue to rely on spirometry, a test dating back to the 1800s, which is inconvenient for the patient and often gives ambiguous results, meaning high misdiagnosis rates . Worse, many patients have to wait months if not years for a diagnosis because the delivery of spirometry in primary care is fraught with operational and logistical challenges.
“We desperately need to equip primary care doctors with accurate, easy-to-perform tests that enable early and accurate diagnosis of patients from the point they manifest symptoms. In doing so, we can reduce health care inefficiencies and costs, reduce delays in diagnosis, reduce hospitalization costs, and improve patients’ quality of life.