Human eyes hold key to predicting imminent death – study — Analysis

A new, “reliable indicator” of a person’s health problems, ones that may cause early death, has been found by a team of international scientists. Nearly 47,000 individuals were examined by artificial intelligence (AI) and the researchers concluded that the health of their retinas could signal an increased risk of dying.

The study, published this week in the British Journal of Ophthalmology, is based on pinpointing the difference between one’s biological ‘real’ age and one’s chronological age. You can measure this by looking at the state of the retina. This is the tissue that contains nerve cells and has light-sensitive cells.

Although the observational study does not prove a cause, it only offers some suggestions. The data came from UK Biobank, a long-term database. A total of over 80,000 retina images were taken by 46,969 individuals between the ages 40 and 69. These data were then analyzed using computer algorithms for an average 11-year monitoring period. A proportion of so-called “Fast aging,” or people whose retinas looked older than their real age, were calculated.

“A large gap in the age of retinal pigmentation over years is associated with 49%-67% more deaths than those from other diseases such as cancer or cardiovascular disease.,” researchers found. They also suggested this could be used as a screening tool, measuring the retina’s age to predict increased mortality risk.

While the eye tissue naturally deteriorates as a person grows older, the recent research learned to measure what it calls a “Age gap in retinal health.” Being unique to each individual, biological ageing is a better indicator of potential serious health conditions, researchers say. The overall health of the body’s circulatory system and the brain might be studied through looking at the retina, allowing for the evaluation of underlying pathological processes.

Share this story via social media

Follow RT