AI Detects Early Signs of Consciousness in Comatose Patients

Quick Summary

• Covert consciousness refers to awareness in coma patients who appear behaviorally unresponsive yet show signs of consciousness detectable through advanced technologies.
• Researchers developed an AI tool, SeeMe, to analyze subtle facial movements in comatose patients that are imperceptible to clinicians.
• A study involving 37 brain injury patients found SeeMe identified movements indicating consciousness earlier than doctors-on average, 4.1 days (eye movements) and 8.3 days (mouth movements) sooner.
• Patients exhibiting frequent facial responses had better clinical outcomes, suggesting SeeMe’s potential in prognosis prediction and aiding treatment decisions like initiating rehabilitation faster.
• Ethical implications arise around using detected facial responses for potential communication wiht patients who cannot speak, which could enable their participation in care decisions.

Image description: Conceptual digital illustration of a person’s face with glowing cyan digital patterns across its surface.
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