Paramedics may scan a patient's face using a new smartphone app to detect a stroke in seconds. According to researchers, the AI-powered technology detects stroke indications in facial symmetry and muscle movements.

Lead researcher Guilherme Camargo de Oliveira, a doctoral student at RMIT University in Melbourne, Australia, noted that among the key parameters for stroke patients are their facial muscles. He said, typically, one side of the face "behaves differently from the other." The AI tools and image processing technology they developed can "detect changes in the asymmetry of the smile," which is crucial.

According to a report from US News & World Report, the new technology detected 82% of strokes in 14 stroke patients and 11 healthy people.

"Our face-screening tool detects stroke better than paramedics," stated RMIT School of Engineering professor Dinesh Kumar, a leading researcher, who remarked that their face-screening tool can detect a stroke instantly and "inform the hospital before the ambulance leaves the patient's house."

Stroke-Detecting Smartphone App to Save Millions of Lives

Researchers noted that the smartphone application would not replace hospital-based stroke diagnostic testing, but it might assist in identifying patients who require treatment by correlating their symptoms to a stroke.

Blockages in brain arteries or ruptured blood vessels can cause strokes. Confusion, verbal impairment, motor control loss, and facial expression loss are symptoms.

According to studies, emergency departments and community hospitals miss nearly 13% of strokes, and 65% of patients without a documented neurological examination suffer an undiagnosed stroke. Researchers noted that usually, stroke signs are subtle, and emergency responders "interacting with persons who are not their race or gender-especially women and people of color-are more likely to ignore signals."

The team plans to create an app for the smartphone tool and collaborate with doctors to diagnose other facial expression-affecting brain disorders.

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Little Exercise is Better Than No Exercise at All

Meanwhile, separate research indicates that even little exercise reduces stroke risk, per a HealhDay report.

Researchers discovered that those who exercised less than suggested had a reduced stroke risk than those who did not. High "ideal" physical activity reduced stroke risk by 29% compared to no exercise. Even "below target" activities lowered risk by 18%.

Senior researcher Raffaele Ornello, a postdoctoral researcher in applied clinical sciences and biotechnology at the University of L'Aquila in Italy, led the team. He noted that they found that all leisure-time physical activity can avert stroke. Hence, they encourage people to become active physically "even at the lowest levels."

The report stated that the report consolidated findings from 15 previous studies on stroke risk and physical activity in 752,000 people tracked over a decade.

Even moderate physical activity below recommended levels lowered stroke risk by 27% to 29%, compared to no exercise. These advantages were irrespective of sex or age, demonstrating that physical exercise benefits everyone.

Experts recommend 150 minutes of moderate-intensity or 75 minutes of strenuous activity each week. Moderate-intensity activities include brisk walking, water aerobics, ballroom dancing, gardening, doubles tennis, and casual biking.

According to the American Heart Association, vigorous-intensity exercises include jogging, swimming laps, jumping rope, quick cycling, and heavy yard work.

Around 15 million individuals suffer from stroke annually. Five million die, and five million are permanently incapacitated, the World Health Organization noted. The most modifiable factors of the fatal condition are hypertension and smoking. For every ten stroke deaths, four may have been prevented with blood pressure control.

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