Emerging Trends with AI in Radiology in 2023

One of the ongoing trends with the development of artificial intelligence (AI) modalities in radiology is an increasing emphasis on improving efficiencies with non-interpretative tasks.

In a recent interview, Sonia Gupta, MD said the combination of AI and natural language processing can help retrieve and analyze key historical points from a patient’s electronic medical record (EMR). Dr. Gupta emphasized that this technology could help streamline patient triage, radiology reporting and the management of incidental finding follow-up.

“(With) incidental finding follow-up, AI reads the report and detects the findings that need follow-up … and can also insert the follow-up recommendations for you into the report. Again, this is all non-interpretative and natural language processing-based type of AI. I think that is a really great opportunity we can all utilize,” maintained Dr. Gupta, an abdominal radiologist, a board member of the American Board of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine, and the chief medical officer of Change Healthcare.

(Editor’s note: For related content, see “Emerging Insights on Improving Radiology Workflows,” “Assessing the Value Proposition of AI in Radiology” and “AI in Radiology: Top Five Articles of 2022.”)

Dr. Gupta said the hope is that this emphasis on simplifying non-interpretative tasks could reduce time-consuming elements of radiology workflows and help curtail burnout.

Noting that approximately one-third of radiologists are currently utilizing some form of AI in practice, Dr. Gupta said the combination of cancer screening with AI and appropriate reimbursement could accelerate AI adoption in radiology.

Pointing out there are currently upward of 200 Food and Drug Administration (FDA) 510(k) clearances in radiology, Dr. Gupta said the ongoing consolidation of AI vendors may make it easier for radiologists to choose among relevant systems for their practice. She added that consolidation could be a boon for early adopters, who may gain access to more AI offerings than they originally signed up for.

For more insights from Dr. Gupta, watch the video below.