Smart Phone cameras to detect fungi in cornea

With the steady advent of technology, Smart Phone cameras appear to have gone much beyond selfie-clicking aptitudes – and this time, it’s to detect the presence of fungi! Far-fetched as it may sound, doctors at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) have actually made use of the technology to provide a point-of-care diagnosis (medical testing at or near the site of patient care).

The method refers to a kind of medical testing, which can be done at or near the site of patient care. If brought into practice, the technology can aid people across remote and rural areas to get diagnosis.  

Using the concept, a team of doctors at the AIIMS have been able to detect the presence of fungi in cornea using a Smart Phone camera and a pocket magnifier.

“Poor accessibility to diagnostic facilities; high cost and shortage of skilled interpreters, often lead to delays in the detection of fungal infections of the cornea. This leads to the decreased benefits of therapeutic effects and may even cause loss of vision,” said Tushar Agarwal, additional professor of Ophthalmology and Cornea expert at AIIMS.

To the make the detection process easier, Agarwal explained: “We took a corneal scrapping from a patient on a slide. Then we clicked a picture of the scrapping using a Smart Phone camera and later examined it using a pocket magnifier (battery operated device with a plastic body). We were able to see the fungi and detect its presence in the sample.”