Researchers use artificial intelligence to offer an instant COVID-19 test

Australian researchers say they have developed a test for COVID-19 which can deliver a result within a minute.

Artificial intelligence offers an almost instant diagnosis of COVID-19 based on a CT scan. Picture: Monash University.

Researchers at Monash University and two Chinese institutes have developed a test for COVID-19 that they say can offer instant verification.

It involves conducting a lung CT scan and has to be done in-house. But they say the results can be delivered in less than a minute and the test will particularly suit people who fall ill and go straight to hospital.

The researchers say they have trained artificial intelligence to interpret a lung CT scan to find evidence of the virus’s impact. They say a key step in controlling the infection is to quickly identify positive cases and treat patients appropriately.

The work is a collaboration between Monash, Sun Yat-sen University and the First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University in China.

But why do a CT scan rather than a simple nose/throat swab?

Dr Xiaojun Chang from Monash’s Faculty of Information Technology says it takes longer to produce the results of a swab test and some people are not comfortable with it. There is the possibility of contamination if a cotton swab after sampling is not handled properly, and cases where a CT scan is more convenient.

“For undiagnosed severe patients, if they can do routine examinations such as CT immediately after they are sent to the hospital, the results can assist in determining whether or not it is COVID-19 in a very short time,” he says.

“There are a number of patients that cannot afford to wait before getting a diagnosis.”

He says if someone cannot stand the discomfort of the nose/throat swab, they can go for a CT scan.

He says the use of AI offers a speedy diagnosis. “While the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases continues to outweigh the number of experienced medical personnel needed to diagnose lung CT scans, an automated report generation tool allows for more accurate and timely COVID-19 diagnosis,” says Dr Chang.

Dr Xiaojun Chang from Monash University's Faculty of Information Technology.

He says the effect of COVID-19 can be detected in the lungs even before the onset of symptoms.

He says that rather than simply notifying a patient that they may be diagnosed with COVID-19, a healthcare professional can use the AI-generated report to offer a complete picture of what the diagnosis looks like.

“A health professional also can take into account additional factors such as fever, coughing or breathing difficulties, which are not identified in a medical image alone.”

“While an AI-generated medical report will never eliminate the work of a healthcare professional, it can act as an effective tool to reduce the pressure experienced by doctors during COVID-19,” said Professor Anyuan Li, a radiologist from The First Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University.

Dr Chang says the AI-based system is ready for adoption now and it’s a matter of making it available to hospitals and other medical facilities.