Samsung Brings Together Medical Imaging and AI for Radiologists at RSNA 2018

Samsung has applied its AI algorithms to assist diagnosis in each of its imaging modalities

Samsung Electronics, a leader in medical imaging technology, is showcasing its latest Ultrasound, Digital Radiography, Computed Tomography (CT), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) concept and their software innovations at the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA) 2018 Annual Meeting at McCormick Place in Chicago.

“We are pleased that Samsung’s AI technologies have been successfully applied to the existing diagnostic imaging devices and have been well received in the market,” said Dongsoo Jun, President of Health & Medical Equipment Business at Samsung Electronics and CEO of Samsung Medison. “As a comprehensive diagnostic imaging solution provider, we will continue to strengthen our technologies through collaboration with hospitals and healthcare professionals. We aim to bring together radiologists and AI to fill in the gaps for improved healthcare management.”

Samsung showcases several types of AI based diagnostic imaging software:

• Ultrasound System – S-Detect™ for Breast is AI based software which analyzes breast lesions using ultrasound images, and has been implemented into Samsung’s ultrasound systems dedicated to Radiology. It assists in standardizing reports and classification of suspicious breast lesions by incorporating BIRADS® ATLAS* (Breast Imaging-Reporting and Data System, Atlas)

According to a recently published study¹ by radiology professor Tommaso Bartolotta from the University of Palermo in Italy, S-Detect™ for Breast has shown to assist various degrees of improvement in the overall diagnosis of breast lesions. When using S-Detect™ for Breast, the diagnostic accuracy for doctors with experience of four years or less improved from 0.83 to 0.87 (AUC, Area Under Curve). S-Detect™ for Breast could be a useful tool for supporting and guiding breast diagnosis among non-expert breast imaging physicians (Only shape and orientation descriptors are automatically classified in the United States).

• Digital Radiography – By using AI technology, the ‘Bone Suppression’ function, which reduces the bone signal from the chest x-ray image, clearly brings out the lung tissues obscured by the bones. ‘SimGrid™’ has also been introduced as a solution to ease the workflow to replace grids, while providing excellent image quality with reduced scatter artifacts. According to a recently published study², ‘SimGrid™’ provided image quality almost as good as the images taken with a physical grid.

The Auto Lung Nodule Detection (ALND) is a CAD (Computer Aided Detection) solution based on AI technology used in the detection of lung nodules and is 510(k) pending. According to a recent  study³in press in Journal of Thoracic Imaging, ALND improved the detection sensitivity of lung cancer nodules 3 cm or smaller in chest radiographs by seven percentage points to 92 percent, compared with the average of six chest radiologists.

• Computed Tomography – Samsung has introduced the intra-cranial hemorrhage package that combines a mobile stroke unit with a radiological computer aided triage and notification solution based on AI technology.

• Magnetic Resonance Imaging – Utilizing AI technology, Samsung is developing a technology to display information such as knee cartilage thickness as well as images of knee arthritis patients. The software is a prototype and not for sale in any region of the world.

At the Samsung booth, attendees will find a separate ‘AI zone’ that allows visitors to experience Samsung’s AI technology more easily. Samsung will also host a symposium that will demonstrate how its image processing technology improves diagnostic accuracy and promote radiation safety for pediatric patients.

Through the release of new diagnostic tools that utilize diverse data based on AI technology, Samsung will continue to support healthcare professionals to improve the diagnostic accuracy.

For more information on Samsung’s healthcare business, and products, please visit https://www.samsunghealthcare.com.

About Samsung Medison

Samsung Medison is a global leading medical device company, founded in 1985. With a mission to bring health and well-being of people’s lives, the company manufactures diagnostic ultrasound systems around the world across various medical fields. In 2011, Samsung Medison became an affiliate company of Samsung Electronics, integrating world’s best IT, image processing, semiconductor and communication technologies into medical devices.

¹Tommaso Vincenzo Bartolotta, et al. Focal breast lesion characterization according to the BIRADS US lexicon: role of a computer aided decision making support. La radiologia medica. 2018 Mar 22

²S. Y. Ahn, et al. The Potential Role of Grid-Like Software in Bedside Chest Radiography in Improving Image Quality and Dose Reduction: An Observer Preference Study. Korean J Radiol, 2018; 19(3):526-533

³M.J. Cha, et al. Performance of Deep Learning Model in Detecting Operable Lung Cancer with Chest Radiographs. J Thorac Imaging, 2018 In press