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The system allows remote ultrasound access through a robotic arm. In the routine ultrasound setting, the doctor (radiologist) stands in close contact with the patient for the entire duration of the scan. However, cross-sectional imaging is preferred instead in the current pandemic scenario with stringent social distancing requirements – a more expensive and less dynamic technique. Ultrasonography is a non-invasive, non-ionizing, cost-effective, rapid, bedside, and readily available modality with immense use in point-of-care and follow- up examinations.
The research team at IIT Delhi was led by Prof. Chetan Arora and Prof. Subir Kumar Saha. Dr. Chandrashekhara from AIIMS made this system. Mr. Suvayan Nandi was the lead contributor from Addverb Technologies.
This system will promote health care and make the system more prepared for further pandemics. Besides its role in the pandemic, it will allow a better outreach of ultrasound imaging to remote rural areas of India. The radiologist manipulates the ultrasound probe remotely from a remote location, acquires the ultrasonographs, and then transmits them to the monitors at the doctor’s end through a Wi-Fi network. Sitting at a remote location, the doctor can view all the images and assess the patient, similar to a clinical setting. The facility can also be extended for global outreach.
Website link:
https://home.iitd.ac.in/show.php?id=37&in_sections=Press
Study on the impact of environmental indicators on the COVID-19
pandemic in Delhi
Currently, there is a massive debate on whether meteorological and air quality parameters play a crucial role in the transmission of COVID-19 across the globe. With this background, an IIT Indore study aims to evaluate the impact of air pollutants (PM2.5, PM10, CO, NO, NO2, and O3) and meteorological parameters (temperature, humidity, wind speed, and rainfall) on the spread and mortality due to the COVID-19 outbreak in Delhi from 14 March 2020 to 3 May 2021. The Spearman’s rank correlation method employed on secondary data shows a significant correlation between the COVID-19 incidences and the PM2.5, PM10, CO, NO, NO2, and O3 concentrations. Amongst the four meteorological parameters, temperature is strongly correlated with COVID-19 infections and deaths during the three phases, i.e.,
VOL. IV ISSUE 10
VIGYAN PRASAR 23
COVID-19 SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY EFFORTS IN INDIA