Artificial Intelligence for Detecting and Quantifying Fatty Liver in Ultrasound Images: A Systematic Review

BACKGROUND

Non-alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD) is growing more prevalent worldwide. Although non-invasive diagnostic approaches such as conventional ultrasonography and clinical scoring systems have been proposed as alternatives to liver biopsy, their efficacy has been called into doubt. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is now combined with traditional diagnostic processes to improve the performance of non-invasive approaches.

OBJECTIVE

This study explores how well various AI methods function and perform on ultrasound (US) images to diagnose and quantify non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

METHODOLOGY

A systematic review was conducted to achieve this objective. Five science bibliographic databases were searched, including PubMed, Association for Computing Machinery ACM Digital Library, Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers IEEE Xplore, Scopus, and Google Scholar. Only peer-reviewed English articles, conferences, theses, and book chapters were included. Data from studies were synthesized using narrative methodologies per Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) criteria.

RESULTS

Forty-nine studies were included in the systematic review. According to the qualitative analysis, AI significantly enhanced the diagnosis of NAFLD, Non-Alcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH), and liver fibrosis. In addition, modalities, image acquisition, feature extraction and selection, data management, and classifiers were assessed and compared in terms of performance measures (i.e., accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity).

CONCLUSION

AI-supported systems show potential performance increases in detecting and quantifying steatosis, NASH, and liver fibrosis in NAFLD patients. Before real-world implementation, prospective studies with direct comparisons of AI-assisted modalities and conventional techniques are necessary.

Empowering Patients: Making Health Information and Systems Safer for Patients and the Public. Contribution of the IMIA Health Informatics for Patient Safety Working Group

OBJECTIVES

The objectives of this paper are to explore issues and perspectives from four regions of the world where health information systems are contributing to patient empowerment and influencing patient safety.

METHODS

Members of the IMIA Working Group for Health Information Systems Safety came together to explore global issues at the intersection of health information systems safety, patient empowerment and patient safety. The group carried out a review and synthesis of the empirical and grey literature in four different regions/countries of the world that have differing health information system safety priorities.

RESULTS

Regions/countries from differing parts of the world are developing: (1) high quality, safe information for individuals to use in their health related decision making, (2) patient portals and testing them for their safety, (3) methods for identifying unsafe health information system features and functions, and (4) ways of engaging citizens in identifying unsafe features and functions of health information systems.

CONCLUSIONS

Internationally, there has been a rise in the number of health information systems and technologies that are being developed to support patient care. The amount of health information available on the World Wide Web (WWW), and the use of mobile phone software to support consumer health behaviours and self-management of chronic illnesses has also grown. The use of some of these health information systems and technologies has helped citizens to improve their health status (e.g. patient portals, mobile phones). However, the safety of these systems and technologies has come into question. As a result, there is a need to refine these systems and ensure their safety when they are used by patients and their families.

Strengths and weaknesses of using conferencing technologies to support drug policy knowledge exchange

This paper outlines the experiences with and lessons learned from the use of conferencing technologies in supporting knowledge exchange groups. We discuss the strengths and weaknesses of these technologies when used to support distant knowledge exchange activities within drug policy groups. The strengths and weaknesses of face-to-face meetings are also discussed.

Early development of an enterprise health data warehouse

The purpose of this study is to describe early development challenges of an enterprise data warehouse within a Saudi Arabian academic healthcare facility. An action case research method was selected for this paper. The study took place between December 2009 and February 2010. Data collection included interviews, meeting observations, and meeting minutes. Early development challenges centered on the development of clear contracts with vendors; development of a clear project plan; a need to fast-track bureaucracy; and educate clinicians and staff about the project; and lack of data standardization.

Development of a graduate level course in e-Health and Emerging Technology in Saudi Arabia

This paper provides an overview of a newly developed course in E-health and Emerging Technology for King Saud Bin Abdul Aziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS) Masters of Health Informatics program. The paper provides an overview of the program, description on the course development process, instructional methods, and course evaluation. The paper also describes the faculty's experience in the development of the course. Future evaluation will focus on students' learning experience and content used in the course.

The use of conferencing technologies to support drug policy group knowledge exchange processes: an action case approach

OBJECTIVES

To describe experiences, lessons and the implications related to the use of conferencing technology to support three drug policy research groups within a three-year period, using the action case research method.

DESIGN

An action case research field study was executed. Three different drug policy groups participated: research, educator, and decision-maker task groups. There were a total of 61 participants in the study. The study was conducted between 2004 and 2007. Each group used audio-teleconferencing, web-conferencing or both to support their knowledge exchange activities.

MEASUREMENTS

Data were collected over three years and consisted of observation notes, interviews, and meeting transcripts. Content analysis was used to analyze the data using NIVIO qualitative data analysis software.

RESULTS

The study found six key lessons regarding the impact of conferencing technologies on knowledge exchange within drug policy groups. We found that 1) groups adapt to technology to facilitate group communication, 2) web-conferencing communication is optimal under certain conditions, 3) audio conferencing is convenient, 4) web-conferencing forces group interactions to be "within text", 5) facilitation contributes to successful knowledge exchange, and 6) technology impacts information sharing.

CONCLUSIONS

This study highlights lessons related to the use of conferencing technologies to support distant knowledge exchange within drug policy groups. Key lessons from this study can be used by drug policy groups to support successful knowledge exchange activities using conferencing technologies.

A literature review on distance knowledge exchange in healthcare groups: what can we learn from the ICT literature?

As healthcare groups continue to communicate and collaborate at a distance on knowledge exchange activities, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) has come to play an increasingly important role in supporting such interactions. However, to date, the literature on knowledge exchange appears disconnected from that of ICT. Research on the effects of ICT on knowledge exchange activities is needed. The literature review explores the potential impacts ICTs can have on knowledge exchange groups, and especially, the social interaction process. A discussion of how ICTs could impact the social interaction process of knowledge exchange activities is made.

Leading knowledge producers within the biomedical informatics community

OBJECTIVES

To present findings on academic leadership within the biomedical informatics community based upon the number of research articles produced by authors, institutions, and countries within five biomedical informatics journals.

METHODS

Five biomedical informatics journals were analyzed for the most producing author, institution, and country for two time periods: 1995-1999 and 2000-2004.

RESULTS

Results show that an overall trend exists whereby the academic leadership for author, institution, and country is the U.S. The results exist for both time periods of 1995-1999 and 2000-2004.

CONCLUSIONS

Even though individual institutional and author rankings may have fluctuated within the two time periods (1995-1999 and 2000-2004), U.S. dominance at the institutional and author level remains significant within the five biomedical journals selected for this study.

Collaborative Technology Use by Healthcare Teams

This paper reviews the literature on the use of collaborative technologies by healthcare teams between 1980 and 2003. Multiple databases were searched with explicit inclusion criteria that yielded 17 conceptual and empirical papers. The discussions of these literatures centered on the individual, team, and technological dimensions of collaborative technology use within healthcare teams. Results show that collaborative healthcare technologies can have positive effects on team work processes at both the individual and group level. The limited number of research studies accentuates the need for additional research in this area. Future research should focus on defining team tasks; determining which type of groupware works for a particular health setting; and exploring the effects of groupware on patient care delivery and the organization. Without research in these areas, it will be difficult to harness the full advantages of using groupware technologies by collaborative healthcare teams.