Title: Android Application for Medicine Expiry Date Detection
Authors: Magdalena Makweta
Baraka Sererya
Sadick Mathias
Innosent John
Jane Brickimas
Volume: 10
Issue: 6
Pages: 400-402
Publication Date: 2026/06/28
Abstract:
The improper management of medicine expiry dates poses a significant risk to public health, healthcare costs, and patient safety, particularly in developing countries where manual stock monitoring is still prevalent. Expired medicines can lead to reduced therapeutic effectiveness, adverse drug reactions, and economic losses due to wastage. With the rapid growth of mobile computing, computer vision, and artificial intelligence (AI), automated medicine expiry date detection systems have emerged as a promising solution to address these challenges. This review paper critically examines existing research and technologies related to medicine expiry date detection, including image processing, optical character recognition (OCR), mobile health (mHealth) applications, and inventory management systems. The paper identifies key gaps in current approaches, such as limited accuracy under real-world conditions, lack of offline functionality, and poor integration with healthcare workflows. Based on the reviewed literature, the paper highlights design considerations and future research directions for developing an intelligent, accessible, and reliable medicine expiry date detection application suitable for low-resource environments.