Accurate and efficient pulmonary CT imaging workflow for COVID-19 patients by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology

Background: The ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has put radiologists at a higher risk of infection during the computer tomography (CT) examination for the patients. To help settling these problems, we adopted a remote-enabled and automated contactless imaging workflow for CT exa...

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Main Authors: Yadong Gang, Xiongfeng Chen, Hanlun Wang, Jianying Li, Ying Guo, Bin Wen, Jinxiang Hu, Haibo Xu, Xinghuan Wang
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2021-05-01
Series:Intelligent Medicine
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667102621000103
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author Yadong Gang
Xiongfeng Chen
Hanlun Wang
Jianying Li
Ying Guo
Bin Wen
Jinxiang Hu
Haibo Xu
Xinghuan Wang
author_facet Yadong Gang
Xiongfeng Chen
Hanlun Wang
Jianying Li
Ying Guo
Bin Wen
Jinxiang Hu
Haibo Xu
Xinghuan Wang
author_sort Yadong Gang
collection DOAJ
description Background: The ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has put radiologists at a higher risk of infection during the computer tomography (CT) examination for the patients. To help settling these problems, we adopted a remote-enabled and automated contactless imaging workflow for CT examination by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology to reduce the potential exposure of radiologists to 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) infection and to increase the examination efficiency, patient scanning accuracy and better image quality in chest CT imaging . Methods: From February 10 to April 12, 2020, adult COVID-19 patients underwent chest CT examinations on a CT scanner using the same scan protocol except with the conventional imaging workflow (CW group) or an automatic contactless imaging workflow (AW group) in Wuhan Leishenshan Hospital (China) were retrospectively and prospectively enrolled in this study. The total examination time in two groups was recorded and compared. The patient compliance of breath holding, positioning accuracy, image noise and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) were assessed by three experienced radiologists and compared between the two groups. Results: Compared with the CW group, the total positioning time of the AW group was reduced ((118.0 ± 20.0) s vs. (129.0 ± 29.0) s, P = 0.001), the proportion of scanning accuracy was higher (98% vs. 93%), and the lung length had a significant difference ((0.90±1.24) cm vs. (1.16±1.49) cm, P = 0.009). For the lesions located in the pulmonary centrilobular and subpleural regions, the image noise in the AW group was significantly lower than that in the CW group (centrilobular region: (140.4 ± 78.6) HU vs. (153.8 ± 72.7) HU, P = 0.028; subpleural region: (140.6 ± 80.8) HU vs. (159.4 ± 82.7) HU, P = 0.010). For the lesions located in the peripheral, centrilobular and subpleural regions, SNR was significantly higher in the AW group than in the CW group (centrilobular region: 6.6 ± 4.3 vs. 4.9 ± 3.7, P = 0.006; subpleural region: 6.4 ± 4.4 vs. 4.8 ± 4.0, P < 0.001). Conclusions: The automatic contactless imaging workflow using intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology allows for reducing the examination time and improving the patient's compliance of breath holding, positioning accuracy and image quality in chest CT imaging.
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spelling doaj.art-08e01e536ac148a0b76631c4e22efa552022-12-22T03:09:46ZengElsevierIntelligent Medicine2667-10262021-05-011139Accurate and efficient pulmonary CT imaging workflow for COVID-19 patients by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technologyYadong Gang0Xiongfeng Chen1Hanlun Wang2Jianying Li3Ying Guo4Bin Wen5Jinxiang Hu6Haibo Xu7Xinghuan Wang8Department of Radiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, ChinaDepartment of Radiology, Puren Hospital affiliated to Wuhan University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430080, ChinaDepartment of Radiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, ChinaGE Healthcare, Computed Tomography Research Center, Beijing 100176, ChinaGE Healthcare, Computed Tomography Research Center, Beijing 100176, ChinaTAMI Intelligence Technology (Beijing) Co. Ltd, Beijing 100176, ChinaDepartment of Radiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, ChinaDepartment of Radiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China; Haibo Xu, Department of Radiology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, No. 169 Donghu Road, Wuchang District, Wuhan 430071, ChinaDepartment of Urology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China; Center for Evidence-based and Translational Medicine, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan 430071, China; Corresponding authors: Xinghuan Wang, Center for Evidence-based and Translational Medicine, 6 Department of Urology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, No. 169 Donghu Road, Wuchang District, Wuhan 430071, ChinaBackground: The ongoing coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has put radiologists at a higher risk of infection during the computer tomography (CT) examination for the patients. To help settling these problems, we adopted a remote-enabled and automated contactless imaging workflow for CT examination by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology to reduce the potential exposure of radiologists to 2019 novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) infection and to increase the examination efficiency, patient scanning accuracy and better image quality in chest CT imaging . Methods: From February 10 to April 12, 2020, adult COVID-19 patients underwent chest CT examinations on a CT scanner using the same scan protocol except with the conventional imaging workflow (CW group) or an automatic contactless imaging workflow (AW group) in Wuhan Leishenshan Hospital (China) were retrospectively and prospectively enrolled in this study. The total examination time in two groups was recorded and compared. The patient compliance of breath holding, positioning accuracy, image noise and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) were assessed by three experienced radiologists and compared between the two groups. Results: Compared with the CW group, the total positioning time of the AW group was reduced ((118.0 ± 20.0) s vs. (129.0 ± 29.0) s, P = 0.001), the proportion of scanning accuracy was higher (98% vs. 93%), and the lung length had a significant difference ((0.90±1.24) cm vs. (1.16±1.49) cm, P = 0.009). For the lesions located in the pulmonary centrilobular and subpleural regions, the image noise in the AW group was significantly lower than that in the CW group (centrilobular region: (140.4 ± 78.6) HU vs. (153.8 ± 72.7) HU, P = 0.028; subpleural region: (140.6 ± 80.8) HU vs. (159.4 ± 82.7) HU, P = 0.010). For the lesions located in the peripheral, centrilobular and subpleural regions, SNR was significantly higher in the AW group than in the CW group (centrilobular region: 6.6 ± 4.3 vs. 4.9 ± 3.7, P = 0.006; subpleural region: 6.4 ± 4.4 vs. 4.8 ± 4.0, P < 0.001). Conclusions: The automatic contactless imaging workflow using intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology allows for reducing the examination time and improving the patient's compliance of breath holding, positioning accuracy and image quality in chest CT imaging.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667102621000103Coronavirus disease 2019Artificial intelligenceRoboticsComputer tomography
spellingShingle Yadong Gang
Xiongfeng Chen
Hanlun Wang
Jianying Li
Ying Guo
Bin Wen
Jinxiang Hu
Haibo Xu
Xinghuan Wang
Accurate and efficient pulmonary CT imaging workflow for COVID-19 patients by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology
Intelligent Medicine
Coronavirus disease 2019
Artificial intelligence
Robotics
Computer tomography
title Accurate and efficient pulmonary CT imaging workflow for COVID-19 patients by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology
title_full Accurate and efficient pulmonary CT imaging workflow for COVID-19 patients by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology
title_fullStr Accurate and efficient pulmonary CT imaging workflow for COVID-19 patients by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology
title_full_unstemmed Accurate and efficient pulmonary CT imaging workflow for COVID-19 patients by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology
title_short Accurate and efficient pulmonary CT imaging workflow for COVID-19 patients by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology
title_sort accurate and efficient pulmonary ct imaging workflow for covid 19 patients by the combination of intelligent guided robot and automatic positioning technology
topic Coronavirus disease 2019
Artificial intelligence
Robotics
Computer tomography
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2667102621000103
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