Smartphone retinal imaging for diabetic eye disease in Egypt
Smartphone-based Retinal Imaging for Diabetic Retinopathy Detection in Egypt
This project uses a low-cost smartphone camera and AI to find signs of diabetic eye damage in adults with diabetes in Egypt.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Kennesaw State University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Kennesaw, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11501665 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you have diabetes in Egypt, researchers would use an inexpensive attachment on a smartphone to take pictures of your retina. Those images will be run through deep-learning software adapted to work with lower-quality smartphone photos to look for signs of diabetic retinopathy. The team will optimize the imaging setup and image-processing steps to improve picture quality and diagnostic accuracy in real-world clinics and community settings. This R21 phase aims to show the approach is practical and can increase access to retinal screening where standard fundus cameras are too costly or bulky.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are adults (21+) with diabetes in Egypt who can attend participating clinics or community screening sites for retinal photographs.
Not a fit: People without diabetes, those who cannot get usable retinal photos because of very advanced eye disease or poor cooperation, or those outside the study locations are unlikely to benefit directly.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could make retinal screening cheaper and more available and help catch sight-threatening diabetic retinopathy earlier.
How similar studies have performed: Smartphone-based retinal imaging and AI tools have shown promising preliminary results, but most automated algorithms were developed for high-quality fundus cameras and smartphone approaches remain emerging and less tested in low-resource settings.
Where this research is happening
Kennesaw, United States
- Kennesaw State University — Kennesaw, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Karakaya, Mahmut — Kennesaw State University
- Study coordinator: Karakaya, Mahmut
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.