OPTIMI predicts the risk of falling into depression with a 85% reliability

The Polytechnic University of Valencia, the Jaume I University of Castellón and the University of Valencia, under the coordination of the company everis, have developed OPTIMI, a computer tool capable of predicting whether a person with a high level of stress is at risk of falling into depression.

The OPTIMI project, that has been carried out everis together with the Polytechnic University of Valencia, the Jaume I University of Castellón and the University of Valencia, has developed the prototype of a computer tool capable of predicting whether a person with a high level of stress is at risk of falling into depression, based on the joint study of a series of physiological and psychological variables, using artificial intelligence techniques. It is a computer tool, based on artificial neural networks, capable of predicting whether a person is at risk of falling into depression with a reliability of around 85 percent in the subjects analyzed

The project of 3,5 million euros and with a duration of 3 years, It is part of the VII European Framework Program and is completing its first phase of implementation. OPTIMI is based on the hypothesis that the central problem and starting point of long-term mental illness depends on the individual's capacity and ability to cope with stress.. During this first phase of the project, data from 95 Spanish volunteers, Swiss and Chinese, with the purpose of integrating all the information collected and characterizing the risk of falling into depression. In this analysis, behavioral patterns associated with stress and the ability to overcome it have been found..

Specifically, The data collected in this proof of concept includes both physiological parameters (heart rate and its variation, the level of activity performed, sleep quality, the hormone cortisol - which is secreted in situations of stress -, the voice and the asymmetry in the activity of the two brain lobes), as psychological parameters (through different questions related to stress and mood in an electronic diary).

The calibration of the everis predictive tool has been carried out with the disease risk identification models provided by the psychologist experts from the Jaume I University of Castellón.

In these two years of the project, verification of the operation of the sensors in a domestic environment has also been achieved.. This way, The correlation between the measured signs and symptoms related to depression in the daily life of patients has been proven..

Second phase of the project

From this point, the second phase of the project begins, whose ultimate goal is to develop an online system to prevent depression and learn to cope with stress, using preventive treatments based on Computerized Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CCBT) and the home use sensors designed in OPTIMI.

This second phase of the project, which will take place simultaneously in the United Kingdom and Spain, includes the clinical trials necessary to verify the effectiveness of preventive treatment using ICT tools. The Jaume I University of Castellón and the University of Valencia have begun recruiting a hundred unemployed people, who will be the first to use the new computer program to prevent depression and learn to manage stress that has been designed by the team of professionals from the Psychology and Technology Laboratory (Labpsitec) and that Labhuman has developed.

According to Catalina Jiménez,, director of the everis health area and project coordinator, “The success of the application can open the doors to the creation of a system capable of offering predictions in the field of mental illnesses and offering preventive and personalized treatment.”. These types of diseases are expected to increase and be the great problem of humanity in the coming years.”.

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