Highmark, Bosch Announce AI Pediatric Asthma Research Collaboration

By Hannah Nelson

January 05, 2022 - Highmark Health and Bosch have announced a research partnership that will explore the use of innovative sensor technology and artificial intelligence (AI) to detect pediatric pulmonary conditions, such as asthma.

The collaboration builds upon an age-old practice in healthcare; when doctors put a stethoscope to a patient's chest, they can hear audio patterns that help them detect abnormalities. Highmark and Bosch are applying the same principles of the stethoscope by leveraging AI-enabled sensor technology to listen and detect audio cues that could aid in patient diagnosis.

By using high-fidelity microphones and AI for sound analysis, the research team will investigate if pediatric pulmonary conditions like asthma can be detected using the noise emitted through patients’ breathing patterns.

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The Pediatric Institute of Allegheny Health Network (AHN) will conduct the clinical studies which are scheduled to begin in the first quarter of 2022.

Joseph Aracri, DO, AHN pediatrician and chair of its Pediatric Institute will conduct the first feasibility study in a small cohort of pediatric patients. During the patient's visit, the high-resolution microphone will capture sounds as the children speak and breathe. Then, the researchers will add the sounds as a feature into the AI and machine learning techniques, along with clinically relevant information.

"This unique collaboration between two industry leaders fits squarely with our mission of exploring technological innovations that can improve the health and wellness of our patients and members," Kelly J. Shields, PhD, senior research data scientist at Highmark Health said in a public statement.

"Bosch's global leadership in the development of pioneering industrial and consumer technologies and Highmark Health's R&D expertise, along with AHN's leading pediatric expertise is an incredibly promising combination that we believe can help transform the diagnosis and treatment of asthma and other breathing disorders,” Shields continued.

The technology that the researchers will use for the study is currently being used aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to assess system operations.

Bosch's SoundSee technology captures ambient noise through built-in microphones and then uses artificial intelligence to extract operational characteristics of the machines and components from their emitted audio patterns to spot potential irregularities.

"It has always been the vision of Bosch that the SoundSee technology would have applications beyond space," said Samarjit Das, PhD, leader of the Intelligent Internet of Things group at Bosch Research in Pittsburgh.

"Our new research collaboration with Highmark Health and Allegheny Health Network is another important step in demonstrating the potential of this technology – and specifically artificial intelligence – to provide benefit to humankind,” Das added.

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