QF centre develops tool for early diagnosis of autism

The success of an innovative eye tracking screening tool in diagnosing Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) in children is a major advancement in the early diagnosis, Dr Fouad Alshaban, senior scientist at the Neurological Disorders Research Centre (NDRC) of Qatar Biomedical Research Institute (QBRI), has said.

The tool, developed by NDRC, has been very successful, he explained. QBRI, part of Qatar Foundation’s Hamad Bin Khalifa University, had signed an agreement with Argus Cognitive, in association with Rush University, Chicago, US, in October 2021, to support the early diagnosis of ASD. The Argus diagnostic tool aims to bring machine learning and artificial intelligence into the ADOS-2 (Autism Diagnostic Observation schedule-2). It is a test that takes about 45 minutes. Through the tool, the diagnosis will not depend on the experience of the person conducting the test – as is the case in most medical centres where the doctor, based on his or her own experience, observes the patient, and bases their perception of the condition and determines whether the patient has autism or not. “With the new diagnosis tool, machine learning and artificial intelligence will bring objectivity to the test. The test is conducted in a room with three cameras – one focused on the patient, another on the person doing the test, and the third giving a full view of the room where the test is taking place. The person conducting the test wears an eye tracking glass to look at the expressions of the patient while interacting with them,’ explained, Dr Alshaban. This data is then gathered and used in machine learning and artificial intelligence. At the end of the test, the machine will decide if the patient has autism or not.“Children are presented with visual stimuli that include short videos and photos, through a computer display connected to a remote eye-tracking device. As for the Argus diagnostic tool, we can use it for anyone beyond the age of one year old. This means any child who can interact and play with others can be checked to see if they have ASD,” Dr Alshaban continued. The scientist said that the English version of the eye tracking technology is ready, and the centre is working on commercialising it. “Our Arabic version will be ready for release within six months, and we will adopt this technology for the first time in several medical centers not only in Qatar, but in the Arab region. This will have a significant positive impact on people with autism in these communities,” he remarked.He also revealed the NDRC team is also working on the establishment of the first ASD registry in Qatar for those aged 13 and above.Earlier detection of autism results in better treatment and the chances of treatment become greater, and intervention services such as behavioural, speech and occupational therapy become more effective.“The most common age for diagnosing the condition is five years. Some families who do not pay attention to any disorder in their child, thinking that their behaviour is normal will discover the condition of their child only when they send them to school. Treating this child, at this age, will not have the same effect as opposed to treating the child at the age of one and a half or two years,” he remarked.He said that in 2019, QBRI published a study which showed that, in Qatar, for every 87 newborn babies, there was one with autism and globally, every two years, the cases are increasing.“We have no published data for the cost in Qatar, but as we know, in Qatar, all children with disabilities are offered free healthcare, as well as education intervention and assistance. Had these services not been offered for free, these would cost a lot. For example, in the US, it costs more than $1mn to take care of a child with autism, excluding educational and some interventional services," he added.