Tag: clinical AI
New method assesses and improves the reliability of radiologists’ diagnostic reports
Due to the inherent ambiguity in medical images like X-rays, radiologists often use words like “may” or “likely” when describing the presence of a certain pathology, such as pneumonia. But do the words radiologists use to express their confidence level accurately reflect how often a particular pathology occurs in patients? A new study shows that when radiologists express confidence about a certain pathology using a phrase like “very likely,” they tend to be overconfident, and vice-versa when they express less confidence using a word like “possibly.” Using clinical data, a multidisciplinary team of MIT researchers in collaboration with researchers and clinicians at hospitals affiliated with Harvard Medical School created a framework to quantify how reliable radiologists are when they express certainty using natural language terms. Learn more
Can deep learning transform heart failure prevention?
The ancient Greek philosopher and polymath Aristotle once concluded that the human heart is tri-chambered and that it was the single most important organ in the entire body, governing motion, sensation, and thought.Today, we know that the human heart actually has four chambers and that the brain largely controls motion, sensation, and thought. But Aristotle was correct in observing that the heart is a vital organ, pumping blood to the rest of the body to reach other vital organs. When a life-threatening condition like heart failure strikes, the heart gradually loses the ability to supply other organs with enough blood and nutrients that enables them to function.
Researchers from MIT and Harvard Medical School recently published an open-access paper in Nature Communications Medicine, introducing a noninvasive deep learning approach that analyzes electrocardiogram (ECG) signals to accurately predict a patient’s risk of developing heart failure. In a clinical trial, the model showed results with accuracy comparable to gold-standard but more-invasive procedures, giving hope to those at risk of heart failure. The condition has recently seen a sharp increase in mortality, particularly among young adults, likely due to the growing prevalence of obesity and diabetes. Learn more
Using AI to predict lung cancer risk
In recent years, lung cancer rates have been rising in nonsmokers, a troubling trend for the world's #1 deadliest cancer. Sybil is a deep learning model built by MIT Jameel Clinic and Mass General Brigham researchers that accurately predicts lung cancer risk up to 6 years in advance by analyzing a patient's LDCT scan. How exactly does this state-of-the-art model work and what was the key insight that brought it to life? Watch this 7-minute video featuring the researchers behind the model to learn more about how Sybil is transforming the future of lung cancer screening. Learn more
