Computers can diagnose stroke victims now

Each week, we spotlight a cool innovation recommended by some of the industry's top tech writers. This week's pick is an algorithm that can diagnose a stroke.

"Thousands of stroke victims are disabled every year because the right treatment comes too slowly," said Thomas Burton at The Wall Street Journal. That may change with the advent of new technologies that can more precisely diagnose stroke victims in a fraction of the time. "The technologies use computer algorithms to cross-reference a stroke patient's brain scan with a vast database of scans from other victims."

The scans can be done by "less experienced doctors in outlying hospitals or by paramedics with portable scanning devices in an ambulance." Results are instantly sent to specialists who can confirm a diagnosis and recommend treatment. Stroke victims can then be rushed to a center specializing in treating strokes, instead of "languishing for hours at a less equipped hospital waiting for a diagnosis that often comes too late to help."

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