Closer Look
Understanding AI research in medicine, in one slide
Courtesy Rahul Deo
A little background: Last year STAT's Bob Herman suggested one could earn a Ph.D. in health policy from just one PowerPoint slide. Now our colleague Brittany Trang reports from a recent AI conference that one might make sense of AI research in medicine in one slide (above). Leaving aside the question of which is the more difficult challenge, here's how Atman Health chief medical officer and Brigham and Women's associate physician Rahul Deo boiled down the AI issue: The riskiest, most impactful studies draw far less attention these days than the rest of the research.
Top of the mountain are the highest-impact, highest-risk AI models that would figure out how to replace the most complex physician tasks with automation. Next important would be steps toward that goal: models that predict patient risk, clinical decision support models, and language models to automate rote office tasks. Forget the rest, Deo says. Read more.
health
The toll from tainted eyedrops continues
Another person has died and more people have suffered vision loss after using eyedrops contaminated by drug-resistant bacteria. The CDC reported a fourth death and a 14th case of vision loss on Friday, bringing total infections to 81 people, up from three deaths and eight cases of vision loss in March. Four other people had an eyeball surgically removed after infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which is resistant to standard antibiotics.
Most patients had used certain brands of eyedrops, now recalled. The CDC advised people to stop using EzriCare Artificial Tears and two other products made by the same manufacturer, Delsam Pharma's Artificial Tears and Delsam Pharma's Artificial Ointment. On a trip to the plant in India that made the eyedrops, U.S. health inspectors uncovered inadequate sterility measures, the Associated Press reports. That's not a surprise, this STAT First Opinion says.
mental health
Teens with depression more likely to say they have access to a gun, survey finds
High school students who have depression think they have greater access to guns than peers who don't experience this mental health risk for suicide, a survey has found. Guns are the most common method of suicide among teens, so previous research has focused on access to guns in the household. The new study, out in Pediatrics today, asked about guns at home or elsewhere. Questions screening for depression or suicidality found just under a quarter said yes to one or both. On guns:
- Around 1 in 10 overall own guns, commonly as gifts.
- More than 4 in 10 overall think they could find a gun.
- Roughly 1 in 4 teens with depression — but not suicidality when examined separately — thought they could get a gun compared to 1 in 5 without these conditions. "This finding may be skewed because it does not include those who had increased access and completed suicide," the authors note.
If you or someone you know may be considering suicide, contact the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline: call or text 988 or chat 988lifeline.org. For TTY users: Use your preferred relay service or dial 711 then 988.
In a new episode of the "Color Code" podcast, STAT's Nicholas St. Fleur zooms in on North Bellport, which sits in the shadows of a massive landfill and has the lowest life expectancy on Long Island. Listen here.
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