Scientist Uses Retinal Scan to Diagnose Autism

Benny Zee, a scientist from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, demonstrates retinal eye scanning technology used for early detection of autism, during an interview with Reuters in Hong Kong, China 29 January, 2021. Reuters
Benny Zee, a scientist from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, demonstrates retinal eye scanning technology used for early detection of autism, during an interview with Reuters in Hong Kong, China 29 January, 2021. Reuters
TT
20

Scientist Uses Retinal Scan to Diagnose Autism

Benny Zee, a scientist from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, demonstrates retinal eye scanning technology used for early detection of autism, during an interview with Reuters in Hong Kong, China 29 January, 2021. Reuters
Benny Zee, a scientist from the Chinese University of Hong Kong, demonstrates retinal eye scanning technology used for early detection of autism, during an interview with Reuters in Hong Kong, China 29 January, 2021. Reuters

A Hong Kong scientist has developed a method to use artificial intelligence to scan retinas of children as young as six to detect early autism or the risk of autism and hopes to develop a commercial product this year.

Retinal eye scanning can help to improve early detection and treatment outcomes for children, said Benny Zee, a professor at the Chinese University of Hong Kong.

"The importance of starting early intervention is that they are still growing, they are still developing. So there is a bigger chance of success," Zee said.

His method uses a high-resolution camera with new computer software which analyzes a combination of factors including fiber layers and blood vessels in the eye.

The technology can be used to identify children at risk of autism and get them into treatment programs sooner, said Zee.

Seventy children were tested using the technology, 46 with autism and a control group of 24.

The technology was able to identify the children with autism 95.7 percent of the time. The average age tested was 13, with the youngest being six.

Zee's findings have been published in EClinicalMedicine, a peer-reviewed medical journal.

Autism specialists welcomed his findings but said there remained a huge stigma, with parents often reluctant to believe their children have autism even when there are clear signs.

Zee told Reuters that his research is intended to be a supplemental tool to a professional assessment by licensed healthcare professionals.



China to Offer Childcare Subsidies in Bid to Boost Birth Rate 

People push baby strollers along a business street in Beijing on July 13, 2021. (AFP)
People push baby strollers along a business street in Beijing on July 13, 2021. (AFP)
TT
20

China to Offer Childcare Subsidies in Bid to Boost Birth Rate 

People push baby strollers along a business street in Beijing on July 13, 2021. (AFP)
People push baby strollers along a business street in Beijing on July 13, 2021. (AFP)

China's government will offer subsidies to parents to the tune of $500 per child under the age of three per year, Beijing's state media said Monday, as the world's second most populous nation faces a looming demographic crisis.

The country's population has declined for three consecutive years, with United Nations demography models predicting it could fall from 1.4 billion today to 800 million by 2100.

The nationwide subsidies apply retroactively from January 1, Beijing's state broadcaster CCTV said, citing a decision by the ruling Communist Party and the State Council, China's cabinet.

"This is a major nationwide policy aimed at improving public wellbeing," CCTV said.

"It provides direct cash subsidies to families across the country, helping to reduce the burden of raising children," it added.

There were just 9.54 million births in China last year, half the number than in 2016, the year it ended its one-child policy, which was in place for more than three decades.

The population declined by 1.39 million last year, and China lost its crown as the world's most populous country to India in 2023.

Marriage rates are also at record low levels, in a country where many young couples have been put off having children by high child-rearing costs and career concerns.

Many local governments have already rolled out subsidies to encourage childbirth.

In March, Hohhot, the capital of China's northern Inner Mongolia region, began offering residents up to 100,000 yuan ($14,000) per newborn for couples with three or more children, while first and second children will be eligible for 10,000 and 50,000 yuan subsidies.

In Shenyang, in northeastern Liaoning province, local authorities give families who have a third child 500 yuan per month until the child turns three.

Hangzhou, in eastern Zhejiang province, offers a one-time payment of 25,000 yuan to couples who have a third child.

More than 20 provincial-level administrations in the country now offer childcare subsidies, according to official data.

Premier Li Qiang vowed to provide childcare subsidies during the government's annual work report in March.

The country's shrinking population is also ageing fast, which has sparked worries about the future of the country's pension system.

There were nearly 310 million aged 60 and over in 2024.