Projects

HTTK toob kokku juhtivad psüühika, keha, sotsiaalse konteksti ja ruumilise konteksti uurijad, et luua distsipliinide ülene arusaam komplekssüsteemidest, mis mõjutavad heaolu: elu kvaliteeti erinevates valdkondades objektiivses ja eriti subjektiivses mõttes. Me käsitleme 4 uurimisvaldkonda. 1) KORRELAADID: Millised bio-psühholoogilised ja sotsiaal-ruumilised omadused on seotud heaolu püsivamate komponentidega nagu eluga rahulolu? 2) MEHHANISMID: Kuidas rulluvad inimestes lahti heaolu dünaamilised komponendid, näiteks emotsioonid? 3) ENESEHOOL: Kuidas inimesed ise oma heaolu enesehoole ökosüsteemides mõistavad ja juhivad? 4) SEKKUMISED: Kuidas heaolu isikustatud ja kohandatud sekkumistega edendada? HTTK rahastab interdistsiplinaarseid ametikohti; registriandmetega lõimitud longituud-uuring; doktorikooli; tippsündmusi; ja rändluse ja koostöö toetusmeedet. HTTK tõstab osalevate rühmade, asutuste ja Eesti heaoluteaduste tulemuslikkust ja mõjukust.

This multidisciplinary study aims to decrease cardiovascular mortality in Estonia by increasing treatment adherence and empowering patients to create a supportive self-management environment for monitoring their health and actively participating in the treatment process. Analysing 1) the LDL-cholesterol values of North Estonia Medical Centre (NEMC) patients to find underdiagnosed and undertreated patients and 2) treatment adherence to lipid-lowering drugs (LLD). Identifying patient groups who need additional support. During the pilot project, a novel application will be developed, together with personal support, used to increase LLD adherence. The novelty of the tool – combining the data used in Estonia from the Nationwide Health Information System, ePrescription, and NEMC electronic medical record with the data collected by the patient and enabling two-way communication between the patient and medical staff. In the last stage of the study, an impact assessment of the tool is planned.

The overall goal of the project is to increase the number of healthy life years of the population. Currently, Estonia has recorded one of the lowest number of healthy life years at birth in the EU. To achieve this goal, three closely related areas of digital health are researched, developed and piloted. We use the standardized data exchange environment and digital data of the Estonian health information system (EHIS) to develop applications that increase the use of data collected by the person for health promotion, prevention and control of chronic conditions. Second, we focus on sensors and digital applications supported by artificial intelligence (AI) to allow a person to collect both biosignals and textual data in machine-readable form. With this, we speed up the detection of health risks and reduce the healthcare workload. Thirdly, we develop various AI methods by combining the data in EHIS and the Health Insurance Fund's database, as well as the data collected by the person.

The Xpanding Innovative Alliance (XiA) project is dedicated to advancing interoperability within the healthcare sector, particularly in anticipation of the European Health Data Space (EHDS) regulation. Through a comprehensive educational initiative, XiA aims to address the skills gap in advanced digital health interoperability standards among healthcare providers, digital health solution providers, and individuals. By developing high-quality educational materials and courses, XiA seeks to equip stakeholders with the necessary skills to embrace EHDS-related standards and foster a culture of interoperability.

The present project aims to develop novel and enhance existing methods of explainable artificial intelligence for the analysis of human motor functions. Pilot studies have demonstrated promising results to support the diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases. In addition, we plan to extend the area of application from medicine to cognitive development and cognitive fatigue analysis. The integration of the explainer component will provide medical professionals with the necessary transparency of the decisions made by AI. Application in the area of cognitive development to support the school education process. Cognitive fatigue is known to cause severe injuries and serious financial losses. In-depth understanding of this phenomenon and ability to recognise mental fatigue targets to make the work environment safer and reduce monetary and non-monetary losses in the process of work.

A cloud-based digital health platform for private clinics in East Africa will be developed, focusing on optimizing workflows, monitoring chronic patients, and managing patient care. A distinctive feature of the platform is the combination of a mobile application and an SMS-based triage solution, allowing access for patients with limited digital capabilities. The product is being piloted in Kenya, where a shortage of doctors and a growing population create strong demand for efficient, labor-saving solutions. The solution is based on the logic of primary care digital models tested in Estonia, adapted to the local context.

Teledermoscopy has shown high diagnostic accuracy (sensitivity 90.48% and specificity 92.57%) for early detection of skin cancer in Estonia. However, not all its potential for early detection has been utilized, contributing to high melanoma mortality rates. Objective: This project aims to assess the impact of an integrated approach to patient pathways initiated by teledermoscopy on melanoma management effectiveness, focusing on faster diagnosis confirmation and treatment. Methodology: The study will evaluate the smoothness and effectiveness of the patient pathway initiated by teledermoscopy, integrating improvements based on existing requirements and study findings. The primary outcome measure will be the speed of histologically confirmed diagnosis and subsequent treatment. Result-Hypothesis: It's hypothesized that the integrated pathway will lead to better melanoma patient outcomes compared to previous studies, ensuring timely diagnosis confirmation and treatment."

The aim of the Project “Development of universal data model and continuity of care processes based on international standards for new generation health information systems” is to find appropriate model for digital health care data that could be used for data collection and storage in new generation TIS with the feasibility to implement the same model in other large scale Electronic Health Records (EHR). This data model will be foundation for health care professionals to use digital decision support systems in context of Electronic Medical Record. The definition of data model would lead to the development of EHR processes where minimal set of health status summaries are defined for each specialty/health issue to make evidence-based decision possible. In turn, defined health status summaries are needed for development of continuity of care processes and training of artificial intelligence and development of intuitive Electronic Medical Records.

NORDeHEALTH aims to identify the challenges and opportunities in digitalization of health services, especially when national portals are implemented to give patients online access to their electronic health records (PAEHR) and increase self-management and transparency in healthcare. The goal is to enable further digitalization of the public health sector by providing concrete feedback to the national authorities in the respective countries, provide guidelines and frameworks for design, implementation and evaluation of personal eHealth services (PeHS).

"EXCITE brings together the topranked ICT research groups Estonia to work jointly on a focussed, yet broad and extendable, research programme. It will capitalize on the existing expertise to create synergies on the rich but fragmented landscape of the Estonian ICT research. The consortium will advance foundational theories of model verification and data analysis. On this groundwork, it will develop methods and tools for sound practices of designing and analyzing reliable and secure ICT systems processing large data volumes, as demanded by applications to domains of high socioeconomic relevance (cyberphysical and robotic systems, ehealth and biomedical systems). We will start with 10 cooperation themes with clearly defined objectives, methodology and expected results. These themes will be refined and redefined after 3 years. EXCITE will support research sustainability and provide a development opportunity for young researchers by financing 20-30 PhD students and postdocs.

The most significant findings are related to development of the novel wireless closed-loop patient support system i) energy-efficient protocols for body area networks and ii) fast computing methods for the real-time gait analysis. These novel contributions are relevant for the electrical stimulation of the muscles of the patients suffering from neurological diseases (e.g., multiple sclerosis), in particular assisting them with daily life activities. The outcomes of the project are significantly relevant to society because they directly enhance the state-of-the-art assistive devices. The project has created a wider impact in the following ways: 1- ETSI SmartBAN Standard: “Applying SmartBAN MAC (ETSI TS 103 325) for various use-cases”, Work Item Reference, DTR/SmartBAN-0014, Rapporteur, Muhammad Mahtab Alam, -- ETSI SmartBAN is a specific standard for the low-power body area networks and this project usecase is introduced in this workitem which motivated the needs for the future standard compliant devices. 2- Invention: System and method for self-assessment of physical capabilities and condition changes; Owners: Tallinn University of Technology, Motionmon OÜ; Authors: Alar Kuusik, Katrin Gross-Paju, Muhammad Mahtab Alam; Priority number: US16/268134; Priority date: 5.02.2019. 3- Collaboration with Hospitals: We had a positive collaboration with i) East Tallinn Central hospital and ii) West Tallinn Central hospital with specific neurological departments. The methods developed in this project and future devices (beyond this project) comply with the needs of the patients and this will enable enhanced comfortable and effective non-invasive electrical stimulation devices to be used by the patients. Overall, the project yielded significant research output in terms of numbers of scientific publications including 9 Journal and 13 conferences of high quality and impact. So far, these papers are strongly cited by the relevant research community (h-index=9, h-10=9).

In the case of impaired cerebrospinal fluid absorption, or hydrocephalus, the pressure in the cerebral cortex increases, which also narrows the blood vessels that supply the brain, and thus the dynamics of blood flow pulsations in these blood vessels change. The dynamics of blood pulsations change in a similar way in the case of narrowing of the blood vessels, which is caused, for example, by calcification of the arteries of the leg. Both situations would require a simple, repeatable, and inexpensive diagnostic method for early detection and monitoring of changes. Therefore, the aim of the postdoctoral project and a study carried out at the City University of London was to investigate the effect of constriction on the pulsating optical signal recorded from an artery and to develop an optical method to detect the constriction. An arterial system was developed consisting of a pump and tubing that created different levels of fluid flow obstruction. Suitable optical sensors were built to record the optical signal from the tubes and later from the arteries. In the built arterial system, an optical signal related to the change in blood volume and flow was recorded before and after the induced constriction in the tube. Characteristic changes were detected in the signals, which are directly related to narrowing of the arteries mimicking tubes. As follows, the study was carried out in a small group of subjects, in which the constriction in the arm arteries was artificially induced at different levels. The changes detected from the optical pulsating signal recorded from the artery of the arm were consistent with the changes in the optical signal found in the constructed model. These results provide some confidence that this method and optical technology can be used to detect narrowing of the arteries. However, further studies are needed, for example in patients with calcified leg arteries, and thus to monitor and, if necessary, to improve this methodology.