Rishab Gargeya (12) was named a regional finalist in the 2016 Google Science Fair on July 18 for his development of a smartphone application capable of producing an instant diagnosis for common eye diseases.

The Google Science Fair is a global science competition held online, open to anyone between the ages of 13 and 18. Participants have the opportunity to win different prizes including a $50,000 scholarship offered by Google.

The application uses a deep-learning algorithm developed by Rishab. With the support of a low-cost external camera attachment, it scans the retina for irregularities, eliminating the need for clinical testing and producing an instant diagnosis. Rishab’s application is built to combat widespread vision-impairing diseases such as glaucoma and diabetic retinopathy, both of which lead to irreversible eyesight loss and are very common in underdeveloped regions.

“An automated solution for the early detection of retinal diseases is of immediate need, providing patients with timely access to life-altering diagnostics without dependence on medical specialists in clinical settings,” he writes in his project report. “I hope this project can finally provide a low-cost, accessible solution for early detection of eye disease and blindness prevention.”

Rishab began his research in freshman year. His interest in battling eye disease stemmed from a volunteer experience at an eye care clinic near his grandparents’ home in rural India. By shadowing expert retinal specialists and ophthalmologists, Rishab observed clinical inefficiencies.

“Through [my] experience, I learned of the disparity between the number of doctors available and the large number of patients that needed medical attention,” he said. “Current diagnostic methods are time-consuming and expensive, … thereby leaving many patients undiagnosed and susceptible to vision loss over time.”

Rishab worked with Dr. Sheila John, an ophthalmologist in the Teleophthalmology Department at the Sankara Nethralaya Eye Foundation, to adjust the algorithm and deploy the application at screening camps in rural areas.

“While developing my mobile application, I had to keep in constant contact with various clinicians and push multiple releases to their smartphones, gathering feedback and tweaking my application as well as the underlying algorithm to best fit their needs,” he said.

Despite his success, Rishab still faces obstacles in the development process, most notably working to support the application on a diversity of smartphone devices and promoting usability in a clinical setting.

“I am very grateful and honored to receive this recognition [of] my work,” he said. “I am very excited as to how far I have come, and I look forward to working on [the] next steps in my application.”

To learn more about Rishab’s project, view his project link here: goo.gl/WDL6Bk.