HKU develops smartphone stethoscope

Hong Kong University's Faculty of Medicine on Wednesday said it has developed a medical-grade smartphone stethoscope for early detection of valvular heart disease. The faculty said the AI-powered software Vitogram has an estimated accuracy of 81 percent for detecting significant valvular disease, a level comparable to a doctor's assessment using a traditional stethoscope. "I think it does not replace the function of a doctor, you still need a doctor to perform comprehensive assessment on a patient for proper diagnosis, but our invention provides a very powerful disease screening tool," said Associate Professor Joshua Ho. Vitogram uses AI to measure heart sounds from four parts of the chest, with each measurement taking approximately 10 seconds. Ho described the tool as an "AI doctor in your pocket" that allows anyone to conveniently assess their own health. The university's Dr. Wong Chun-Ka said Vitogram is among the first software able to record and analyse heart sounds, as opposed to just a person's heart rate. "We are able to detect structural diseases like valve disease, which is not possible using previous commercially available devices," Wong said. The university is hoping that Vitogram will be available on the market in the next six months to a year and is looking to partner with healthcare organisations in places including Singapore and Malaysia.