@misc{ScheppachMendelProbstetal., author = {Scheppach, Markus W. and Mendel, Robert and Probst, Andreas and Meinikheim, Michael and Palm, Christoph and Messmann, Helmut and Ebigbo, Alanna}, title = {Artificial Intelligence (AI) - assisted vessel and tissue recognition during third space endoscopy (Smart ESD)}, series = {Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Gastroenterologie}, volume = {60}, journal = {Zeitschrift f{\"u}r Gastroenterologie}, number = {08}, publisher = {Georg Thieme Verlag}, address = {Stuttgart}, doi = {10.1055/s-0042-1755110}, abstract = {Clinical setting Third space procedures such as endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) and peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) are complex minimally invasive techniques with an elevated risk for operator-dependent adverse events such as bleeding and perforation. This risk arises from accidental dissection into the muscle layer or through submucosal blood vessels as the submucosal cutting plane within the expanding resection site is not always apparent. Deep learning algorithms have shown considerable potential for the detection and characterization of gastrointestinal lesions. So-called AI - clinical decision support solutions (AI-CDSS) are commercially available for polyp detection during colonoscopy. Until now, these computer programs have concentrated on diagnostics whereas an AI-CDSS for interventional endoscopy has not yet been introduced. We aimed to develop an AI-CDSS („Smart ESD") for real-time intra-procedural detection and delineation of blood vessels, tissue structures and endoscopic instruments during third-space endoscopic procedures. Characteristics of Smart ESD An AI-CDSS was invented that delineates blood vessels, tissue structures and endoscopic instruments during third-space endoscopy in real-time. The output can be displayed by an overlay over the endoscopic image with different modes of visualization, such as a color-coded semitransparent area overlay, or border tracing (demonstration video). Hereby the optimal layer for dissection can be visualized, which is close above or directly at the muscle layer, depending on the applied technique (ESD or POEM). Furthermore, relevant blood vessels (thickness> 1mm) are delineated. Spatial proximity between the electrosurgical knife and a blood vessel triggers a warning signal. By this guidance system, inadvertent dissection through blood vessels could be averted. Technical specifications A DeepLabv3+ neural network architecture with KSAC and a 101-layer ResNeSt backbone was used for the development of Smart ESD. It was trained and validated with 2565 annotated still images from 27 full length third-space endoscopic videos. The annotation classes were blood vessel, submucosal layer, muscle layer, electrosurgical knife and endoscopic instrument shaft. A test on a separate data set yielded an intersection over union (IoU) of 68\%, a Dice Score of 80\% and a pixel accuracy of 87\%, demonstrating a high overlap between expert and AI segmentation. Further experiments on standardized video clips showed a mean vessel detection rate (VDR) of 85\% with values of 92\%, 70\% and 95\% for POEM, rectal ESD and esophageal ESD respectively. False positive measurements occurred 0.75 times per minute. 7 out of 9 vessels which caused intraprocedural bleeding were caught by the algorithm, as well as both vessels which required hemostasis via hemostatic forceps. Future perspectives Smart ESD performed well for vessel and tissue detection and delineation on still images, as well as on video clips. During a live demonstration in the endoscopy suite, clinical applicability of the innovation was examined. The lag time for processing of the live endoscopic image was too short to be visually detectable for the interventionist. Even though the algorithm could not be applied during actual dissection by the interventionist, Smart ESD appeared readily deployable during visual assessment by ESD experts. Therefore, we plan to conduct a clinical trial in order to obtain CE-certification of the algorithm. This new technology may improve procedural safety and speed, as well as training of modern minimally invasive endoscopic resection techniques.}, subject = {Bildgebendes Verfahren}, language = {en} } @article{ScheppachMendelProbstetal., author = {Scheppach, Markus W. and Mendel, Robert and Probst, Andreas and Meinikheim, Michael and Palm, Christoph and Messmann, Helmut and Ebigbo, Alanna}, title = {ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) - ASSISTED VESSEL AND TISSUE RECOGNITION IN THIRD-SPACE ENDOSCOPY}, series = {Endoscopy}, volume = {54}, journal = {Endoscopy}, number = {S01}, publisher = {Thieme}, doi = {10.1055/s-0042-1745037}, pages = {S175}, abstract = {Aims Third-space endoscopy procedures such as endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) and peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM) are complex interventions with elevated risk of operator-dependent adverse events, such as intra-procedural bleeding and perforation. We aimed to design an artificial intelligence clinical decision support solution (AI-CDSS, "Smart ESD") for the detection and delineation of vessels, tissue structures, and instruments during third-space endoscopy procedures. Methods Twelve full-length third-space endoscopy videos were extracted from the Augsburg University Hospital database. 1686 frames were annotated for the following categories: Submucosal layer, blood vessels, electrosurgical knife and endoscopic instrument. A DeepLabv3+neural network with a 101-layer ResNet backbone was trained and validated internally. Finally, the ability of the AI system to detect visible vessels during ESD and POEM was determined on 24 separate video clips of 7 to 46 seconds duration and showing 33 predefined vessels. These video clips were also assessed by an expert in third-space endoscopy. Results Smart ESD showed a vessel detection rate (VDR) of 93.94\%, while an average of 1.87 false positive signals were recorded per minute. VDR of the expert endoscopist was 90.1\% with no false positive findings. On the internal validation data set using still images, the AI system demonstrated an Intersection over Union (IoU), mean Dice score and pixel accuracy of 63.47\%, 76.18\% and 86.61\%, respectively. Conclusions This is the first AI-CDSS aiming to mitigate operator-dependent limitations during third-space endoscopy. Further clinical trials are underway to better understand the role of AI in such procedures.}, language = {en} } @misc{MeinikheimMendelScheppachetal., author = {Meinikheim, Michael and Mendel, Robert and Scheppach, Markus W. and Probst, Andreas and Prinz, Friederike and Schwamberger, Tanja and Schlottmann, Jakob and G{\"o}lder, Stefan Karl and Walter, Benjamin and Steinbr{\"u}ck, Ingo and Palm, Christoph and Messmann, Helmut and Ebigbo, Alanna}, title = {INFLUENCE OF AN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) BASED DECISION SUPPORT SYSTEM (DSS) ON THE DIAGNOSTIC PERFORMANCE OF NON-EXPERTS IN BARRETT´S ESOPHAGUS RELATED NEOPLASIA (BERN)}, series = {Endoscopy}, volume = {54}, journal = {Endoscopy}, number = {S 01}, publisher = {Thieme}, doi = {10.1055/s-00000012}, pages = {S39}, abstract = {Aims Barrett´s esophagus related neoplasia (BERN) is difficult to detect and characterize during endoscopy, even for expert endoscopists. We aimed to assess the add-on effect of an Artificial Intelligence (AI) algorithm (Barrett-Ampel) as a decision support system (DSS) for non-expert endoscopists in the evaluation of Barrett's esophagus (BE) and BERN. Methods Twelve videos with multimodal imaging white light (WL), narrow-band imaging (NBI), texture and color enhanced imaging (TXI) of histologically confirmed BE and BERN were assessed by expert and non-expert endoscopists. For each video, endoscopists were asked to identify the area of BERN and decide on the biopsy spot. Videos were assessed by the AI algorithm and regions of BERN were highlighted in real-time by a transparent overlay. Finally, endoscopists were shown the AI videos and asked to either confirm or change their initial decision based on the AI support. Results Barrett-Ampel correctly identified all areas of BERN, irrespective of the imaging modality (WL, NBI, TXI), but misinterpreted two inflammatory lesions (Accuracy=75\%). Expert endoscopists had a similar performance (Accuracy=70,8\%), while non-experts had an accuracy of 58.3\%. When AI was implemented as a DSS, non-expert endoscopists improved their diagnostic accuracy to 75\%. Conclusions AI may have the potential to support non-expert endoscopists in the assessment of videos of BE and BERN. Limitations of this study include the low number of videos used. Randomized clinical trials in a real-life setting should be performed to confirm these results.}, subject = {Speiser{\"o}hrenkrankheit}, language = {en} } @article{EbigboMendelProbstetal., author = {Ebigbo, Alanna and Mendel, Robert and Probst, Andreas and Meinikheim, Michael and Byrne, Michael F. and Messmann, Helmut and Palm, Christoph}, title = {Multimodal imaging for detection and segmentation of Barrett's esophagus-related neoplasia using artificial intelligence}, series = {Endoscopy}, volume = {54}, journal = {Endoscopy}, number = {10}, edition = {E-Video}, publisher = {Georg Thieme Verlag}, address = {Stuttgart}, doi = {10.1055/a-1704-7885}, pages = {1}, abstract = {The early diagnosis of cancer in Barrett's esophagus is crucial for improving the prognosis. However, identifying Barrett's esophagus-related neoplasia (BERN) is challenging, even for experts [1]. Four-quadrant biopsies may improve the detection of neoplasia, but they can be associated with sampling errors. The application of artificial intelligence (AI) to the assessment of Barrett's esophagus could improve the diagnosis of BERN, and this has been demonstrated in both preclinical and clinical studies [2] [3]. In this video demonstration, we show the accurate detection and delineation of BERN in two patients ([Video 1]). In part 1, the AI system detects a mucosal cancer about 20 mm in size and accurately delineates the lesion in both white-light and narrow-band imaging. In part 2, a small island of BERN with high-grade dysplasia is detected and delineated in white-light, narrow-band, and texture and color enhancement imaging. The video shows the results using a transparent overlay of the mucosal cancer in real time as well as a full segmentation preview. Additionally, the optical flow allows for the assessment of endoscope movement, something which is inversely related to the reliability of the AI prediction. We demonstrate that multimodal imaging can be applied to the AI-assisted detection and segmentation of even small focal lesions in real time.}, language = {en} } @misc{ScheppachMendelProbstetal., author = {Scheppach, Markus W. and Mendel, Robert and Probst, Andreas and Rauber, David and Rueckert, Tobias and Meinikheim, Michael and Palm, Christoph and Messmann, Helmut and Ebigbo, Alanna}, title = {Real-time detection and delineation of tissue during third-space endoscopy using artificial intelligence (AI)}, series = {Endoscopy}, volume = {55}, journal = {Endoscopy}, number = {S02}, publisher = {Thieme}, doi = {10.1055/s-0043-1765128}, pages = {S53 -- S54}, abstract = {Aims AI has proven great potential in assisting endoscopists in diagnostics, however its role in therapeutic endoscopy remains unclear. Endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD) is a technically demanding intervention with a slow learning curve and relevant risks like bleeding and perforation. Therefore, we aimed to develop an algorithm for the real-time detection and delineation of relevant structures during third-space endoscopy. Methods 5470 still images from 59 full length videos (47 ESD, 12 POEM) were annotated. 179681 additional unlabeled images were added to the training dataset. Consequently, a DeepLabv3+ neural network architecture was trained with the ECMT semi-supervised algorithm (under review elsewhere). Evaluation of vessel detection was performed on a dataset of 101 standardized video clips from 15 separate third-space endoscopy videos with 200 predefined blood vessels. Results Internal validation yielded an overall mean Dice score of 85\% (68\% for blood vessels, 86\% for submucosal layer, 88\% for muscle layer). On the video test data, the overall vessel detection rate (VDR) was 94\% (96\% for ESD, 74\% for POEM). The median overall vessel detection time (VDT) was 0.32 sec (0.3 sec for ESD, 0.62 sec for POEM). Conclusions Evaluation of the developed algorithm on a video test dataset showed high VDR and quick VDT, especially for ESD. Further research will focus on a possible clinical benefit of the AI application for VDR and VDT during third-space endoscopy.}, subject = {Speiser{\"o}hrenkrankheit}, language = {en} }