INFANT: Enabling life-saving care for newborns by pioneering a novel method to help detect neurological problems
Customer Company Size
Large Corporate
Region
- Europe
Country
- Ireland
Product
- IBM InfoSphere Streams
- Moberg Research CNS monitoring devices
- Babylink
Tech Stack
- Cloud Computing
- Real-time Data Streaming
- Machine Learning Algorithms
Implementation Scale
- Enterprise-wide Deployment
Impact Metrics
- Customer Satisfaction
- Productivity Improvements
Technology Category
- Analytics & Modeling - Machine Learning
- Analytics & Modeling - Real Time Analytics
- Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Data Management Platforms
Applicable Industries
- Healthcare & Hospitals
Applicable Functions
- Quality Assurance
Use Cases
- Remote Patient Monitoring
- Predictive Quality Analytics
Services
- Cloud Planning, Design & Implementation Services
- Data Science Services
About The Customer
The Irish Centre for Fetal and Neonatal Translational Research (INFANT) at University College Cork (UCC) is a world-leading perinatal research center funded by Science Foundation Ireland and hosted at the Cork University Maternity Hospital. Its primary purpose is to develop innovations and technologies in perinatal healthcare, with the aim of improving treatment and care for pregnant mothers and newborn babies. INFANT is developing a critical-care neuromonitoring system known as “Babylink” – a real-time streaming decision support platform for newborn EEG analysis. The platform supporting Babylink is IBM® InfoSphere® Streams software alongside network-enabled Component Neuromonitoring System (CNS) monitoring devices from IBM Business Partner Moberg Research, Inc.
The Challenge
Newborn babies, especially those born prematurely or who suffer a difficult labor or a stroke, can have neurological problems that are difficult to detect. Seizures can be one symptom of neurological dysfunction, and if not treated quickly, may cause further damage to the infant’s brain. Electroencephalograms (EEGs) can help detect these problems, but there are only a limited number of neurophysiologists in the world who have the expertise to reliably interpret neonatal EEG data and use it to monitor brain activity. This is a particular problem for newborns with neurological problems, which can be relatively common in babies that are born prematurely or suffer a difficult labor or a stroke. Seizures can be one symptom of neurological dysfunction – and when not treated quickly, may cause further damage to the infant’s brain.
The Solution
The Irish Centre for Fetal and Neonatal Translational Research (INFANT) is developing a critical-care neuromonitoring system known as “Babylink” – a real-time streaming decision support platform for newborn EEG analysis. Babylink captures streaming EEG waveform and vital-sign data from sensors placed on the baby’s body and applies algorithms developed by the INFANT center for realtime detection of neurological problems. These are machine-learning algorithms that automatically pre-process EEG and other waveforms and detect, analyze and classify events such as seizures using data from a historical database of known events. The platform supporting Babylink is IBM® InfoSphere® Streams software alongside network-enabled Component Neuromonitoring System (CNS) monitoring devices from IBM Business Partner Moberg Research, Inc.
Operational Impact
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