Ukrainian medical startup CheckEye, which is developing an artificial intelligence system for the early detection of chronic diseases using retinal images, has received a $175,000 award at the international Healthy Longevity Global Competition organized by the US National Academy of Medicine (NAM). The company took second place in the final stage of the competition, NAM reported.
The award ceremony took place in Washington during the international NAM Global Innovator Summit. The Ukrainian team was represented by CheckEye co-founder Viktoriia Chuchyna, who was identified by the organizers as the leader of the competition project.
The Ukrainian company’s development, called AI-Powered Retinal Screening for Early Detection of Chronic Diseases, involves using artificial intelligence to analyze retinal images and identify signs of chronic diseases.
The technology allows examinations to be conducted without complex invasive procedures. According to the company, capturing an image of the fundus takes about three minutes, after which the image is analyzed by a cloud-based platform using artificial intelligence algorithms.
The examination can be conducted in primary healthcare facilities, pharmacies and specialized screening centers without the direct involvement of an ophthalmologist at the image acquisition stage.
Currently, the platform is primarily focused on detecting diabetic retinopathy and signs of vascular diseases, including arterial hypertension. In the future, the developers intend to expand the technology’s capabilities to assess the risks of more than 50 diseases.
According to the project description submitted to the competition organizers, CheckEye has already screened more than 15,000 people in five countries: Ukraine, Germany, Austria, Romania and the United Kingdom.
The company reports that its algorithms achieve a sensitivity of 93–95% in detecting diabetic retinopathy and a specificity of approximately 90%. These figures are presented in the competition documentation and represent the development results claimed by the team.
As part of a pilot program of Ukraine’s Ministry of Health, implemented from October 2024 to March 2025 in Odesa and Chernihiv regions, more than 870 patients with diabetes underwent screening. According to the project, approximately one-quarter of the participants were referred for treatment.
The company plans to use the $175,000 received from the competition to scale up the technology and further develop methods for the early diagnosis of chronic diseases.
“It is a great honor for us to represent and promote Ukrainian innovations around the world. This recognition at the global level confirms that our technology has the potential to change the approach to treating chronic diseases — from dealing with their consequences to early prevention,” CheckEye founder and CEO Kyrylo Honcharuk said in a company statement.
According to NAM, 147 applications from participants who had previously received support from the program were considered in the final stage of the Healthy Longevity Global Competition. Fourteen projects became winners in various categories, sharing $2 million in awards.
Two projects received the top prizes of $700,000 each, while two others, including Ukraine’s CheckEye, took second place and received $175,000 each. The third prize amounted to $125,000, and nine other projects received honorable mention awards.
In total, over the seven years of the international program, launched by NAM in 2019, its organizers and partners have supported more than 725 projects with over $38 million in funding. The program covered more than 50 countries and territories.
For CheckEye, the award marked another stage of international recognition. The Ukrainian startup previously received support from EIT Health, the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development and Google for Startups, and also won the EIT Health InnoStars Awards 2024.
According to NAM, the total amount of support attracted by CheckEye before receiving the latest award exceeded $750,000.
CheckEye is a Ukrainian HealthTech company specializing in the development of medical screening technologies using artificial intelligence. Its platform is designed for the early detection of diseases based on retinal image analysis and for expanding access to preventive examinations. The company’s founder and CEO is Kyrylo Honcharuk.
artificial intelligence, CHECKEYE, INNOVATION, MEDICINE, STARTUP, UKRAINE
ADONIS Medical Center launched its sleep lab on October 26, 2026; the facility will specialize in the diagnosis and treatment of sleep disorders, according to the medical network’s press office.
The lab offers patients two types of testing: overnight polysomnography in a specially equipped clinic room and at-home sleep studies using portable diagnostic equipment.
Polysomnography allows for a comprehensive assessment of physiological processes during sleep, including sleep structure, breathing, heart rate, and blood oxygen saturation levels. During overnight testing at the clinic, medical staff monitor the equipment’s operation and the quality of the recorded data.
According to the medical center, the room for overnight studies is located directly within the clinic’s shelter, which ensures that the examination is not interrupted during air raid alerts.
For at-home testing, the patient receives a portable device and instructions on how to use it. After the procedure is complete, the equipment is returned to the clinic for analysis of the collected data.
A medical report is prepared within 2–3 business days. Afterward, the patient can consult with a neurologist, who will explain the test results and provide recommendations for further treatment.
If necessary, specialists from various fields—including cardiologists, neurologists, endocrinologists, and psychotherapists—will be involved in the diagnosis and treatment.
ADONIS notes that this specialized examination may be relevant for people who experience regular loud snoring, sleep apnea, frequent nighttime awakenings, morning headaches, constant fatigue upon waking, or excessive daytime sleepiness. Such symptoms may indicate, among other things, obstructive sleep apnea.
The opening of the laboratory comes amid a decline in sleep quality among some Ukrainians due to the full-scale war, constant stress, and nighttime air raid alerts.
The ADONIS Sleep Laboratory is located at: Kyiv Oblast, Sofiivska Borshchahivka village, 90 Akademika Shalimova St.
ADONIS is a Ukrainian network of multidisciplinary medical centers for adults and children, founded in Kyiv in 1997. The network provides medical services across numerous specialties, including diagnostics, outpatient care, and surgical treatment. According to the company, its network includes medical centers in Kyiv and the Kyiv region.
According to Experts Club, American researchers have found a link between frequent daytime napping and an increased risk of developing dementia in people aged 65 and older. According to a study by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, people who napped almost every day had a 48% higher relative risk of developing dementia compared to those who rarely napped.
The study’s findings were published in the scientific journal The Journals of Gerontology: Series A. The final version of the article was published on October 5, 2026, and on October 13, the university released a separate press release announcing the results.
The study included 995 Americans aged 65 and older who were covered by Medicare. At the start of the study in 2013, none of the participants showed signs of probable or possible dementia according to the classification used by the researchers.
The researchers followed the participants for up to ten years, using data from the National Health and Aging Trends Study (NHATS), a nationwide study on aging. They analyzed not only the duration of nighttime sleep but also the frequency of daytime naps, their duration, and the circumstances under which participants fell asleep.
The researchers paid particular attention to the difference between planned daytime naps and instances when a person fell asleep involuntarily, such as while watching TV, reading, or relaxing in a chair.
According to the results of the statistical analysis, frequent daytime napping was associated with a 48% increase in the relative risk of dementia, while unplanned falling asleep was associated with a 39% increase.
In their analysis, the researchers accounted for age, gender, education, the presence of chronic diseases, body mass index, symptoms of depression and anxiety, as well as characteristics of nighttime sleep and the risk of obstructive sleep apnea.
The association remained significant even after adjusting for these factors, suggesting a potential independent role of daytime napping patterns as an indicator of risk for cognitive impairment.
The researchers also found that daytime naps lasting up to 30 minutes were associated with a 40% increase in the relative risk of dementia. At the same time, for naps lasting more than 30 minutes, the statistical association weakened after accounting for characteristics of nighttime sleep.
However, irregular or intentionally scheduled daytime naps did not show a statistically significant increase in risk after adjusting for all major factors.
Overall, during the follow-up period, 417 participants—or 41.9% of the sample—showed signs of possible or probable dementia. Among people who did not nap during the day, this outcome was observed in 37.8%, and among those who regularly napped during the day, in 51.1%. However, the duration of follow-up varied across the different groups, so these percentages should not be interpreted as a direct predictor of individual risk.
In addition to dementia, the researchers found a link between frequent daytime napping and subsequent deterioration in memory and certain executive brain functions, particularly the ability to plan and control complex actions.
However, the researchers emphasize that the results do not prove a cause-and-effect relationship between daytime napping and dementia.
“More frequent daytime napping may be a sign of changes in the brain, rather than the cause of the changes that lead to dementia,” noted the study’s senior author, Adam Spira, a professor in the Department of Mental Health at Johns Hopkins University.
According to the researchers, neurodegenerative processes can begin long before the onset of clinical symptoms of dementia. Among the first areas to change may be those parts of the brain that regulate wakefulness and sleep. As a result, a person may fall asleep more often during the day even before a diagnosis is made.
To test this hypothesis, the researchers conducted an additional analysis, excluding cases of dementia identified during the first five years of follow-up. The association between frequent daytime napping and the subsequent development of dementia persisted. For unplanned sleep episodes, the direction of the association also remained similar, although the statistical uncertainty of the result increased.
The study’s first author, Kenin Jiang, noted that monitoring changes in daytime sleep could be a relatively simple way to identify people at increased risk of dementia early on.
Researchers believe that doctors should pay attention not only to patients’ complaints about nighttime sleep but also to an increase in the frequency of daytime sleepiness, especially if such changes occur for no apparent reason.
At the same time, the authors caution against drawing hasty practical conclusions. The study was observational in nature: the researchers did not alter the participants’ sleep patterns and did not test whether avoiding daytime naps could prevent dementia.
Furthermore, information about daytime napping was collected primarily from the participants themselves, and signs of dementia were identified using a validated algorithm rather than through clinical diagnosis of each individual case.
Therefore, the results do not mean that a short daytime nap is inherently harmful to the brain or that it should be avoided. Instead, new or increasingly frequent episodes of involuntary sleepiness in older adults may be a reason to discuss their health, the quality of their nighttime sleep, and possible cognitive changes with a doctor.
To definitively establish a causal link, additional long-term studies are needed that objectively measure sleep using specialized devices.
Johns Hopkins University, founded in 1876 in Baltimore, is one of the leading research universities in the United States. Its Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, founded in 1916, specializes in epidemiology, disease prevention, mental health, population aging, and the study of risk factors for chronic diseases. The study on daytime napping and dementia was conducted with partial funding from the U.S. National Institute on Aging.
Sources: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, press release dated October 13, 2026; original research article in The Journals of Gerontology: Series A, DOI: 10.1093/gerona/glag208.
Brazil delivered a new batch of medicines to Ukraine under an international humanitarian aid program, the Brazilian Embassy in Kyiv reported.
The shipment was received in October by the Health Department of the Zakarpattia Region in Uzhhorod.
The donated medicines are intended to treat patients with secondary progressive forms of multiple sclerosis, adults with moderate and severe rheumatoid arthritis, as well as children and adolescents with juvenile idiopathic arthritis.
The Brazilian Embassy noted that the new shipment continues bilateral cooperation in the humanitarian sphere and is aimed at supporting Ukraine’s healthcare system amid ongoing humanitarian challenges.
“This new contribution reaffirms Brazil’s firm support for Ukraine and reflects the strong strategic partnership between the two countries, based on longstanding historical and cultural ties,” the embassy’s statement said.
The Brazilian side also stated its intention to continue developing bilateral cooperation and to provide assistance to Ukraine in the humanitarian sphere.
The new batch of medicines represented another delivery of Brazilian humanitarian aid to Ukraine.
Source: Brazilian Embassy in Kyiv
The ADONIS Medical Center has launched a specialized Cough Center, which combines the diagnosis and treatment of patients with persistent, recurrent, or unexplained coughs.
According to the medical network, the new center focuses on a comprehensive approach to patients whose cough persists for a long time, recurs after treatment, or may be associated with several conditions at once.
ADONIS notes that a chronic cough can have various causes and is not always related solely to respiratory tract diseases. Possible factors include allergic conditions, bronchial asthma, the aftereffects of infections, ENT disorders, gastroesophageal reflux, and other conditions; therefore, in some cases, consultation with several specialists is necessary to determine the cause of the symptom.
The Cough Center’s approach involves a systematic diagnostic process that brings together doctors from relevant specialties and conducts the necessary tests within a single medical network. Once the cause is identified, a personalized treatment plan and follow-up care regimen are developed for the patient.
The creation of a specialized center allows for the diagnosis of chronic cough to be focused in one place and reduces the number of visits the patient must make to different specialists and for various tests.
ADONIS has been operating in Ukraine since 1997. According to the company, the network comprises six medical branches in Kyiv and the Kyiv region and provides services in 89 medical specialties. The network includes outpatient centers, laboratories, surgical units, and inpatient facilities. The company employs more than 1,800 specialists.
Source: ADONIS Medical Network
Yuriy Polyachenko, Director of the State Institution “Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine,” was awarded the special Gennadiy Knyshov Award “For loyalty to humanistic ideals and the promotion of universal human values” as part of the 30th anniversary season of the nationwide “Person of the Year 2025” program.
Poliachenko is a Doctor of Medical Sciences, professor, Honored Physician of Ukraine, laureate of the State Prize of Ukraine in Science and Technology, and a full Knight of the Order “For Merit.”
He was born on February 20, 1963, in Kyiv. After graduating from the Kyiv Medical Institute in 1986, he began his professional career at the Kyiv Research Institute of Orthopedics, which now operates as the Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine. He rose through the ranks from junior to senior research fellow at the Clinic of Bone and Purulent Surgery.
In 1995, Yuriy Polyachenko traveled to Cuba, where for three years he headed the International Medical and Health Center and organized treatment for critically ill children, particularly those with cancer and systemic diseases. In 1997, he was awarded the title of “Honored Physician of Ukraine.”
Starting in 1999, Polyachenko devoted a significant portion of his professional career to public administration in the field of healthcare. He served as Deputy Minister and First Deputy Minister of Health, State Secretary of the Ministry of Health, Deputy Secretary of the National Security and Defense Council of Ukraine, and advisor to the President of Ukraine.
From 2005 to 2007, Yuriy Polyachenko headed the Ministry of Health of Ukraine.
After leaving government service, he returned to clinical and scientific medicine. In 2007, he became director of the O.O. Shalimov National Institute of Surgery and Transplantology, a position he held until 2013.
In 2013, Polyachenko was awarded the State Prize of Ukraine in Science and Technology for a series of scientific works. From 2013 to 2014, he served as a People’s Deputy of Ukraine and worked on the Parliamentary Committee on Health Care, where he chaired the Subcommittee on Transplantology.
Since 2020, Polyachenko has headed the Institute of Traumatology and Orthopedics of the National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine. After the start of full-scale Russian aggression, the institute became one of the medical centers providing care to military personnel and civilians with severe injuries.
In 2025, Yuriy Polyachenko was awarded the Order of Merit, First Class, for organizing assistance to wounded and injured civilians and military personnel. He had previously received the Second and Third Classes of this state award.
For over 25 years, Yuriy Polyachenko has combined scientific research with clinical, administrative, and teaching work. He defended his doctoral dissertation in 2002 and was awarded the title of professor in 2004. Since 2025, he has headed the Department of Traumatology and Orthopedics at the O.O. Bogomolets National Medical University.
He is the author of over 100 scientific publications and co-author of nine monographs.
The special Gennadiy Knyshov Award, presented as part of the “Person of the Year” program, is given for contributions to the development of humanistic values, medicine, and socially significant initiatives.
Open4Business is the media partner for the 30th anniversary season of the nationwide “Person of the Year 2025” program.
HEALTHCARE, MEDICINE, National Academy of Medical Sciences of Ukraine, PERSON OF THE YEAR, Yuriy Polyachenko
