At 32%, India bears a disproportionately high burden of global DALYs from chronic respiratory diseases. COVID-19, together with “long COVID” (prolonged respiratory discomfort), and Tuberculosis (TB) have further contributed to the country’s respiratory burden, with limited healthcare resources for the increased number of patients. While timely diagnosis and treatment of respiratory diseases can save lives, screening and diagnostic services remain inaccessible and unaffordable for underserved areas and communities. Currently, most diagnostic services require specialist skills and fully functional laboratory facilities which makes them costly. In this scenario, it is essential to strengthen affordable mass-scale screening and diagnosis of respiratory diseases and initiate timely treatments.

Salcit has developed the “Swaasa AI”, a proprietary platform that can screen people for lung conditions by analysing the recording of a 10-second audio clip of solicited cough. Using artificial intelligence algorithms and machine learning, this one-of-a-kind platform provides an instant evaluation of respiratory health. The audio can either be recorded using the Swaasa AI mobile application, or it can later be relayed into the Swaasa AI system. The audio can be analysed remotely and does not require specialists to be present on-site, thereby eliminating deployment costs. The solution is easy to use, cost-effective and makes respiratory diagnoses accessible and affordable for hard-to-reach areas and underserved communities.