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Samsung on Thursday said it has set a target of screening 150,000 individuals in India for eye diseases using its unique 'EYELIKE Fundus' camera by the end of 2023.

The camera has been developed by Samsung in partnership with the International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB), Yonsei University Health System (YUHS) and Lab SD, Inc.

To screen patients, Samsung has partnered with four eye hospitals  Sitapur Eye Hospital in Uttar Pradesh; Aravind Eye Hospital in Pondicherry; Guruhasti Chikitsalya in Jodhpur, Rajasthan; and Dr. Shroff's Charity Eye Hospital in New Delhi.

So far, Samsung has upcycled nearly 200 units of old Galaxy smartphones and distributed the cameras to partners in India.

"The device comes in handy as it is very easy to use and can be operated by a semi-trained technician as well because of the on-device AI that tell them if the image is normal or abnormal. And since it is portable, it can be carried to remote locations easily where availability of ophthalmic health care is limited," said Dr Sahil Bhandari, Senior Ophthalmologist at Guruhasti Chikitsalya.

An older Galaxy smartphone becomes the brain of the EYELIKE' device, capturing images of a person's retina through a lens attachment for enhanced diagnosis of eye diseases such as diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and age-related macular degeneration that could lead to blindness if not diagnosed on time.

"Programmes such as Galaxy Upcycling' have helped us in transforming lives through the power of innovation. With the 'EYELIKE Fundus' Camera, our partners have been able to provide quality eye screening to patients across India," said Mohan Rao Goli, CTO, Samsung R&D Institute, Bangalore.

The Galaxy Upcycling' programme repurposes older Galaxy devices, transforming them into a handheld device that is being used to provide eye care in underserved communities.

Engineers at Samsung R&D Institute in Bangalore developed the Fundus image capture mechanism, the artificial intelligence-based processing algorithm, the user interface (UI) and server-related operations in the EYELIKE application.

The EYELIKE device scans retinal images and uses an accurate AI-based algorithm on the phones to detect diseases in the retinal images and classify them as normal or abnormal.