How Big Data is Playing an Important Role in Disease Prevention?
Big Data is a term describing the accumulation of new data from sources such as online personal activity, commercial transactions, and sensor networks characterized by high-volume, high-variety, and high-velocity information.
The collection, analysis, and application of big data is a component of a growing field that is referred to by multiple terms. This includes but is not limited to e-health, m-health, digital health, health information technology and e-medicine.
According to experts, disease prevention requires two steps – identifying the modifiable risk factors for diseases and then identifying the correlations between these risk factors by applying analytics on the gathered data sets.
With the evolution of digital technologies, big data is now playing a critical role in disease prevention. In this blog, we shall study big data role in disease prevention and how it’s revolutionizing the healthcare industry.
So, let’s delve dig deep!
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Helping in the fight against Cancer
The search for combating Cancer is in full swing. Researchers in both private and public sectors are dedicated to finding more effective treatment options. Big data is continually revolutionizing how researchers are conducting their research on Cancer by providing them with access to patient information and their trends and patterns that were not accessible before.
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Enabling advanced chronic disease prevention
Healthcare researchers are now increasingly turning to data analytics tools to detect chronic disease and take necessary precautions to prevent it. While developing data models, investigators evaluate specific clinical and non-clinical factors that increase a person’s risk of developing a chronic disease.
Big data models powered by artificial intelligence can help predict a person’s susceptibility due to any substance and help prevent chronic diseases, such as asthma, diabetes and Cancer.
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Provides Shared Data Sets
Advanced electronic medical record systems help in streamlining and optimization of data management. Medical records of patients are mined from various sources, and then analyzed and shared on a single platform using big data. Healthcare providers can access these data management systems to gather or contribute to the existing database by adding relevant information.
According to experts, shared data translates into huge cost savings, as there’s no need to manage or duplicate records at each point in the healthcare stream. Another significant advantage of shared data utilizing big data applications is that it reduces the frequency of trips to the hospital by providing patients with all relevant information digitally.
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Predictive Analysis
Unarguably, the most vital big data role is its predictive capability. Healthcare professionals and caregivers can easily extract information from the existing data sets using AI-based analytics to determine future medical trends and patterns.
Additionally, clinicians can analyze patient’s family history and DNA, identify high-risk areas, and prescribe preventative treatments to curb the chances of developing such diseases.
Life-threatening conditions like Cancer, cardiovascular diseases and diabetes don’t have the same treatment protocol. Instead, the course of treatment is individually formulated based on the patient’s DNA and how she/he responds to that particular treatment.
Experts believe that in the future, with the expansion of big data role, doctors will be able to focus on treating diseases in every stage of development due to big data and genomics combined. They further add that they might even be able to reverse the process by prescribing changes that affected biome back to its healthy state.
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Rapid Development of Pharmaceuticals
With the roll out of big data in healthcare, it has become easier for pharmaceutical companies to develop new drugs. Using predictive modeling and biological and clinical data sets, drug companies can precisely identify the best candidates for drug trials.
Development of advanced AI algorithms in tandem with real-time monitoring of the drug trails implies that the latest biologicals, medicines, and drugs will be available for consumption faster than what it used to be in the past.
According to experts, big data will play a central role in disease prevention, enhanced patient outcomes and reduced readmission rates. They further believe that big data will be the driving force behind fact-based patient information being available at a single click of the mouse. Simply put, the chances of an extended and disease-free life are better with big data.
So, here were 5 big data role that’s helping in disease prevention. Let us know in the comment section if you want to add any. Also, share how you think big data applications will expand in the near future and help in disease prevention.
