Are you anaemic? Test yourself with a SELFIE - PHOTO

Jarrel Seah and Jennifer Tang, both 22, of Melbourne's Monash University, were crowned winners of the Microsoft Imagine Cup in Seattle on Friday after their entry beat 34 other teams from around the world.By following their passion of using technology to solve medical problems, the duo were awarded $US50,000 and a private mentoring session with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.They won over the judges with their revolutionary phone app - called Eyenaemia - which screens for anaemia, or low red blood cell levels, when a user takes a selfie of their eye.Mr Seah and Ms Tang developed the project while they were on a placement in rural Victoria last year and saw a need for an easier way to detect the life-threatening condition.'Both of us were doing placement out in Mildura [northwestern Victoria] when we found that anaemia was a common problem but people in these remote and rural areas had to travel hours just to get a blood test,’ Ms Tang told Daily Mail Australia.'We both like to find solutions where we see a gap and that's what we saw with this particular project.'Eyenaemia identifies the user's risk for the condition by taking a photo of a person's eye, which then analyses the conjunctiva. The results can then be sent to doctors.'We developed an idea where the processing is done online and would take one to two minutes, depending on how good you are at taking selfies,' Jennifer said.'Through the app, we hope it detects the condition early on and helps prevent it.'We're both very interested in technology and how it can improve health.'We believe it can change the way of the future.'As well as winning the Imagine Cup, the pair also won the World Citizenship Championship in Seattle, a competition with the premise: Imagine a world where technology helps solve the toughest problems.‘We're thrilled to have this kind of opportunity because both of us are so passionate about improving the world as it stands,' Ms Tang said.'We knew there was a problem and wanted to solve it with a clear plan to achieve it.'So we're not stopping here. We’re going to continue on with the project and see where it goes.'Mr Seah said that he hopes the project will expand worldwide, particularly in developing countries.'We basically want the app to be accessible to developing countries and rural areas of Australia so we can reach out those who are more disadvantaged,' he said.'So we aim to have the app available at no cost for these areas.'They said the prize money will go towards further development of the app with the hope that Eyenaemia will be released in the next six to 12 months.It is currently being trialed at Mildura Base Hospital and Cabrini Hospital in Malvern, southeast of Melbourne.But just hours after their win, the two have one particular concern on their minds. 'We weren't expecting it, we were both so surprised,' Jennifer said.'It's very exciting and it’s finally starting to sink in a little.'But we've got three pretty big and glass trophies to take back with us - one which is the Imagine Cup and the other two which are the World Citizenship Champions.'The problem is that we packed so light so now we really don't know how we're going to bring them back home.'(dailymail.co.uk)Bakudaily.az