AI fetal heart - polish project

In our method, by focusing on the individual segments and their relationship to each other, we are able to narrow down the diagnosis as much as possible, especially as a 3D geometric image is additionally built in the background of the analysis, which will be assigned to the most likely geometric pattern corresponding to the normal heart or the Congenital Heart Defects (CHDs) in question. To date, no research team other than ours has applied machine learning to the structure of the cardiac segments, their interrelationships within CHDs and normal hearts on the basis of standardized stratified recordings of the fetal chest. Only by means of well-standardized stratified recordings can the geometric relationships of the heart segments that correspond to particular patterns for normal hearts and individual CHDs be analyzed.

This causes the prenatal cardiac scan with one type of CHD to be very different from a normal heart from a technical point of view, or from a heart affected by another type of CHD in the context of the fetal cardiac views used. The reason for this is the differences in the size of the individual cardiac segments, the variability of their geometric relationship to each other, their position, or their distance.

To support frontline doctors performing prenatal screening from 2021 onwards, we are working together with an IT team on an artificial intelligence (AI) algorithm to support their scans. In our method, by focusing on the individual segments and their relationship to each other, we are able to qualify images as much as possible, especially as a 3D geometric image is additionally built in the background of the analysis, which will be assigned to the most likely geometric pattern corresponding to a normal heart or a given type of CHD.

To date, no research team other than ours has applied machine learning to the structure of the cardiac segments, their interrelationships within CHD and normal hearts on the basis of standardized stratified recordings of the fetal chest. Only through well-standardized stratified recordings can the geometric relationships of the cardiac segments that correspond to the individual patterns for normal hearts and individual CHD be analysed. Agnieszka Nocun MD, PhD is coordinating the project. Do not hesitate to contact us if you are interested in more details.