The development of a non-contact screening system for rapid medical inspection at a quarantine depot using a laser Doppler blood-flow meter, microwave radar and infrared thermography

J Med Eng Technol. 2009;33(6):481-7. doi: 10.1080/03091900902952675.

Abstract

In order to conduct fast screening of passengers with infections such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) or pandemic influenza at a quarantine depot, we developed a non-contact screening system with self-produced program to conduct a human screening within five seconds, via a linear discriminant function from non-contact derived variables, i.e. palmer pulse derived from a laser Doppler blood-flow meter, respiration rate determined by a 10-GHz microwave radar, and facial temperature measured by thermography. The system evaluation was conducted on seven healthy male subjects (23 +/- 1 years). In order to achieve a pseudo-infection condition, the subjects maintained an ergometer exercise load (100 W, 10 minutes). Before (normal condition) and after (pseudo-infection condition) exercise, a significant linear discriminant function (p < 0.001) was determined to distinguish pseudo-infection condition from normal condition (Mahalanobis D-square = 20.3, classification error rate <5%). The proposed system appears promising for future application in fast screening of infection at a quarantine depot.

Publication types

  • Retracted Publication

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Body Temperature
  • Diagnostic Imaging / instrumentation
  • Disease Outbreaks / prevention & control
  • Heart Rate
  • Humans
  • Infection Control / instrumentation
  • Infection Control / methods
  • Influenza, Human / diagnosis*
  • Infrared Rays
  • Laser-Doppler Flowmetry*
  • Male
  • Mass Screening* / instrumentation
  • Mass Screening* / methods
  • Microwaves
  • Quarantine*
  • Radar*
  • Respiratory Rate
  • Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome / diagnosis*
  • Thermography*
  • Time Factors
  • Young Adult