Carle Illinois College of Medicine (CI MED) students have developed a new machine-learning system to improve assessment of patients’ recovery from anesthesia following surgery. The innovation won first place in the Society for Technology in Anesthesia’s Engineering Challenge competition in January and could play a key role in improving patient post-surgical care.
As part of the 2023 STA Engineering Challenge, Michael Ma and Maharshi Pandya set out to develop a new way to objectively determine a patient’s recovery status following surgery with sedation. Pandya says the team’s solution could have far-reaching impact on patient safety and outcomes. "The ability to accurately and objectively measure the time course of recovery from anesthesia would ensure that patients receive appropriate care during the recovery period," Pandya said.
Anesthesiologists often rely on assessment of a patient’s speech patterns, particularly slurred speech, as an indicator of their recovery status following surgery under anesthesia. To automate and fine-tune this assessment, the team built a system of machine learning models as well as deep neural networks that accurately detect elements of slurred speech. Ma and Pandya successfully tested and demonstrated their concept by analyzing pre-recorded voice samples from intoxicated people. "By detecting slurred speech as a marker of recovery, health care providers would be able to make more informed decisions about the care of patients in the recovery period. This could lead to improved patient outcomes, such as faster recovery times and reduced risk of complications," Pandya explained.
The team presented their innovation to an audience that included industry executives to nationally known physicians. Ma and Pandya say their work demonstrates CI MED students’ ability to combine their medical knowledge with engineering skills to create solutions that can improve patient care.
Team won a $1000 cash prize along with potential future funding to extend their work. Ma and Pandya are both second-year students at CI MED. Ma is interested in exploring a future in anesthesiology. Pandya has a background in machine learning applications.