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About CorTest

Context & Origins​

Origins

CorTest was created in 2024 from a collaboration between neurologists at the Strasbourg University Hospitals and engineering students from Télécom Physique Strasbourg. More and more patients and relatives spontaneously record seizures with their smartphones. The usefulness of these home videos has been highlighted by several recent publications, but they also have limitations, especially when important information is not captured on camera. CorTest aims to support this with a dual objective:

  • to improve diagnosis by better documenting seizures through structured and informative videos.
  • to strengthen the role of the patient and their relatives by guiding them step by step to film efficiently and safely.

Clinical challenges​

Epilepsy : A Diagnostic Challenge

Epilepsy affects nearly 1% of the population. Its diagnosis relies on detailed analysis of seizures: their onset, motor, cognitive, and emotional manifestations. Questioning patients and relatives often provides key clues, but it may be limited by:

  • memory difficulties after the episode,
  • stress or shock during the seizure,
  • difficulty describing in words what was seen or felt.

As a result, some epilepsies are poorly characterized, or non-epileptic events are mistakenly taken for seizures.

Video-EEG monitoring in hospitals: effective but restrictive

In some cases, especially in preparation for surgery, seizure recording in a video-EEG unit is essential. These units allow seizures to be filmed while simultaneously recording brain electrical activity, with live testing carried out by specialized teams. However, this method has limitations:

  • long and costly hospital stays,
  • limited availability,
  • need to reduce treatments to provoke a seizure, requirement for specially trained staff.

From home videos to clinical insight​

When a video can change everything

More and more patients and families spontaneously bring seizure videos recorded at home. Several studies have confirmed their diagnostic value : in some cases, they provide as much information as a hospital recording.

But in practice, some of these videos are difficult to interpret, mainly due to a lack of informative interactions.

CorTest : a guide during the seizure

CorTest assists the user during the seizure :

  • quick recording start via a home screen widget,
  • safety reminders,
  • simple visual and/or voice instructions to perform gestures, answer questions, or test memory language.

Each interaction is timestamped, which facilitates later interpretation by the neurologist.

Adaptive and Personalized use​

Adapted to every situation

  • "Companion" mode : the app is installed on a relative's phone (parent, spouse, etc.) who films the patient while following the on-screen instructions step by step.

  • "Selfie" mode : for patients whose awareness remains preserved during seizures, this mode allow them to record themselves with the front camera while following the instructions step by step.

A personalized evaluation

The neurologist can adapt CorTest to each patient by configuring the instructions and their order.

Based on a standard template, tests can be added, removed, or rearranged to keep only those that are truly useful.

Thus, each recording focuses on clinically relevant information, without wasting time on unnecessary tasks.

Users & Data security​

Who can use CorTest?

  • Patients and their relatives : to document rare seizures in order to provide effective information to the neurologist, which may potentially shorten the duration of later video-EEG recording if the seizures captured at home match those recorded in hospital.
  • Video-EEG units : the patient or healthcare staff can use the app to efficiently document a seizure that occurs in the temporary absence of specifically trained personnel.
  • Care facilities (nursing homes, etc.) : for certain patients with recurrent, poorly characterized episodes for whom long-term hospitalization is difficult to organize, staff can be equipped with the app to document events as effectively as possible.

Data protection and confidentiality

In the current version of the app, data is stored locally only on the patient’s smartphone, as if recorded using the device’s native camera app. There is no data sharing with third parties. The patient can then choose to show the videos to their neurologist during a later visit, or share them using a third-party tool of their choice.

The app’s architecture also allows configuration for remote data storage, if an approved health data hosting service is available (for example within a healthcare institution). This mode enables the patient to share data without physically meeting their neurologist. Transfer to the secure server is optional and subject to patient consent; data is encrypted and access is controlled.

Institutional recognition & Funding​

This project is part of the "Initiative d'Excellence" and has been funded by the French government under the "Investissements d'Avenir" programme.