Artificial intelligence-assisted analysis of pan-enteric capsule endoscopy in patients with suspected Crohn's disease. A study on diagnostic performance

BACKGROUND AND STUDY AIM: Pan-enteric capsule endoscopy (PCE) is a highly sensitive but time-consuming tool for detecting pathology. Artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms might offer a possibility to assist in the review and reduce the analysis time of PCE. This study examines the agreement between PCE assessments aided by AI technology and standard evaluations in patients suspected of Crohn's disease (CD).

PATIENTS AND METHODS: PCEs from a prospective blinded, multicenter study, including patients suspected of CD (ClinicalTrials.Gov NCT03134586), were processed by the deep learning solution AXARO® (Augmented Endoscopy, Paris, France). Based on the image output, two observers classified the patient's PCE as normal, suggestive of CD, ulcerative colitis, or cancer. The primary outcome was per-patient sensitivities and specificities for detecting CD and Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). Complete reading of PCE served as the reference standard.

RESULTS: 131 patients' PCEs were analyzed, with a median recording time of 303 minutes. The AXARO® framework reduced output to a median of 470 images (2.1%) per patient, and the pooled median review time was 3.2 minutes per patient. For detecting CD, the observers had a sensitivity of 96% and 92% and a specificity of 93% and 90%. For the detection of IBD, both observers had a sensitivity of 97% and a specificity of 91% and 90%. The negative predictive value was 95% for CD and 97% for IBD.

CONCLUSIONS: Using the AXARO® framework reduced the initial review time substantially while maintaining high diagnostic accuracy - suggesting its use as a rapid tool to "rule out" IBD in PCEs of patients suspected of Crohn's disease.