National Cheng Kung University (NCKU) has developed artificial intelligence (AI)-powered software capable of measuring age-related progressive loss of muscle mass (sarcopenia) that it said can serve as an early warning system encouraging patients to seek treatment.
Sarcopenia, a condition usually associated with aging and patients undergoing chemotherapy can increase the likelihood of falls and fractures, but when detected early it can be mitigated through diet and rehabilitation, said Tsai Yi-shan (蔡依珊), director of the clinical innovation and research center at the Tainan-based university.
The Al-powered model is an optimal muscle deficit detection tool for anyone suffering from muscle loss, and it takes information from computed tomography (CT) scans to assess both the quantity and quality of a patient’s muscles to identify muscle deficiency, she said.
Photo: Chen Chia-yi, Taipei Times
In trials it has proven to be highly accurate, Tsai said.
Using a Dice coefficient, a statistical tool that measures similarities between two sets of data, the AI-powered model had a Dice index of 0.94 to 0.95, nearly reaching 1, the highest score, she said.
A score of 1 means the diagnosis of the AI tool would be the same as those from actual measurements, Tsai said, adding that the advantage of the NCKU model is that it generates results about 20 minutes faster than measurements done manually.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare in June granted NCKU a permit to use the AI-powered model commercially, making it the first academic institution to secure a permit to develop AI-related software, and sell it to hospitals and medical institutions.
Tsai said that she hoped the software’s analysis could be provided at no extra cost to cancer patients who have had CT scans because medical institutions can simply feed the CT scan images into the model to get results.
During the three-year period the model’s software needed to mature, four associated patents for the software were granted in Taiwan, and NCKU is applying for patents in the US, Japan and South Korea, among other nations, she said.
NCKU was one of a few academic institutions at a news conference on Tuesday presenting the results obtained under a four-year AI development plan run by the National Science and Technology Council (NSTC).
Another institution that introduced its progress on AI applications was the Chang Gung Medical Foundation.
Foundation physician Kuo Chang-fu (郭昶甫) said the institution has developed a software utilizing AI to assist clinical physicians identify subtle wrist scaphoid fractures.
The software, which has a commercial license, aids in significantly reducing the time patients spend seeking medical attention and the frequency of repeat visits for diagnosis, Kuo said.
It could also be used to support remote medical care, he said.
Since 2020, the NSTC has spearheaded a four-year program to subsidize the development of AI-integrated applications.
The program, which has a budget of NT$2.6 billion (US$81.5 million) and is open to medical groups, has funded nine successful applications in total, including from NCKU, the Chang Gung Medical Foundation and Asia University in Taichung.
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