Face video scan detects heart disease

According to University of Rochester professor Jean-Philippe Couderc, cardiac disease can be identified and diagnosed using contactless video monitoring of the face.

A recent study describes technology and an algorithm that scan the face and detect skin color changes imperceptible to the naked eye.

Sensors in digital cameras record the colors red, green, and blue. Hemoglobin  “absorbs” more of the green spectrum of light, which can be detected by the camera’s sensor. The face is the ideal place to detect this phenomenon, because the skin is thinner and blood vessels are closer to the surface. Participants were connected to an electrocardiogram to compare results from the facial scan to the heart’s electrical activity. Color changes detected by video monitoring corresponded with an individual’s heart rate as detected on an ECG.  Irregular electrical activity of the heart found in people with atrial fibrillation could be identified by observing the pulses of blood flowing through the veins on the face as it absorbed or reflected green light with each heartbeat.

The video monitoring technique – “videoplethymography” – had an error rate of 20 percent, comparable to the 17 to 29 percent error rate associated with automated ECG measurements.


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