This article is based on a story that originally appeared in It Is Innovation (i3) magazine, published by the Consumer Technology Association (CTA)^®.

Here are five ways AI is revolutionizing the digital health technology sector.
 

1. Manage Nutrition and Fitness

Wearables are using AI to make recommendations about nutrition and activity levels. For example, the WELT smart belt which debuted at CES 2016 dynamically tracks waist size and tension, helping determine when the user may have overeaten.

 

Health apps like the Fitbit Coach or Apple’s Health apps are using health databases and extracting analytics on user data to provide personalized workout recommendations.

2. Counsel for Mental Health and Wellness

AI assistance is also changing mental health. Addicaid is a counseling assistant app that leverages clinical research, machine learning and adaptive AI to predict when a person might be at risk of falling into addictive behaviors and offers personalized treatment options.

Other products begin developed in this area include a robot that tracks a user’s mood and offers games and videos to help them manage their mental health.

3. Monitor Heart Health

AI that can interpret ultrasonic scans of the heart enables doctors and other caregivers to monitor and detect potentially life-threatening events. For example, an AI-based Apple Watch app, Cardiogram, has been able to detect an abnormal heart rhythm, sleep apnea and hypertension with high accuracy.
This will assist doctors in identifying and treating heart diseases earlier.

4. Diagnose and Treat Diseases

AI-driven detection systems are being used for early-stage diagnoses and cancer treatment.

In terms of speed alone, AI software can translate patient information into diagnostic information at 30 times human speed and with 99 percent accuracy.

At Houston Methodist Research Institute, medical professionals are using AI software to interpret mammograms, assisting doctors with quick and accurate predictions of breast cancer risk.

AI systems built by University of Heidelberg researchers were found to be 95 percent accurate in identifying skin cancers, compared to the 86.6 percent accuracy achieved by trained professionals.

5. Create More Efficient Digital Appointments

Chatbots reduce the need for in-person appointments and AI allows users of medical help apps to follow a clinical-grade triage process in self-diagnosing their symptoms.

Ultimately, this eases pressure on overworked healthcare professionals and performs certain tasks at exponentially faster speeds.

Machines with AI integration will soon be aiding doctors and nurses in a multitude of ways, allowing medical professionals to focus less on basic tasks and more on patient interaction.