US 11,721,428 B2
Systems and methods for artificial intelligence-based image analysis for detection and characterization of lesions
Johan Martin Brynolfsson, Helsingborg (SE); Kerstin Elsa Maria Johnsson, Lund (SE); and Hannicka Maria Eleonora Sahlstedt, Malmö (SE)
Assigned to EXINI Diagnostics AB, Lund (SE)
Filed by EXINI Diagnostics AB, Lund (SE)
Filed on Aug. 31, 2020, as Appl. No. 17/8,411.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/048,436, filed on Jul. 6, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2022/0005586 A1, Jan. 6, 2022
Int. Cl. G16H 30/40 (2018.01); G16H 50/20 (2018.01); G16H 50/30 (2018.01); G06T 7/11 (2017.01); G06T 7/00 (2017.01)
CPC G16H 30/40 (2018.01) [G06T 7/0012 (2013.01); G06T 7/11 (2017.01); G16H 50/20 (2018.01); G16H 50/30 (2018.01); G06T 2207/10072 (2013.01); G06T 2207/30056 (2013.01); G06T 2207/30096 (2013.01)] 24 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of measuring intensity values within a reference volume corresponding to a reference tissue region so as to avoid impact from tissue regions associated with low radiopharmaceutical uptake, the method comprising:
(a) receiving, by a processor of a computing device, a 3D functional image of a subject, said 3D functional image obtained using positron emission tomography (PET) and/or single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT);
(b) identifying, by the processor, the reference volume within the 3D functional image;
(c) fitting, by the processor, a multi-component mixture model to a distribution of intensities of voxels within the reference volume;
(d) identifying, by the processor, a major mode of the multi-component model;
(e) determining, by the processor, a measure of intensities corresponding to the major mode, thereby determining a reference intensity value corresponding to a measure of intensity of voxels that are (i) within the reference tissue volume and (ii) associated with the major mode;
(f) detecting, by the processor, within the functional image, one or more hotspots corresponding potential cancerous lesions; and
(g) determining, by the processor, for each particular hotspot of at least a portion of the detected hotspots, a lesion index value indicative of: (I) a level of radiopharmaceutical uptake within and underlying lesion to which the particular hotspot corresponds and/or (II) a size of an underlying lesion to which the particular hotspot corresponds, wherein the lesion index value is determined based on (i) a measure of intensity of the particular hotspot and (ii) the reference intensity value.