first of its kind study has found Artificial Intelligence( AI)

Dr Thomas Day, lead author of the study, said:“ Understandably this 20-week scan can be a nervewracking time for parents, as they’ re finding out the health of their unborn child. Our research has shown that AIassisted scans are accurate, reliable and more efficient. We hope that using AI in these scans will free up precious time for sonographers to focus on patient care, making the experience more comfortable and reassuring for parents.”

Results from the trial, published in NEJM AI, found that AIassisted 20-week scans reduced the scan length by over 40 %. The AI-tool freed up sonographers time as they no longer needed to pause, save images or measure during the scan.

The trial featured 78 pregnant participants and 58 sonographers. Each pregnant participant was scanned twice, once using the AI-assisted scanner and once without the use of AI. The sonographers look for signs of 11 different conditions in a baby, such as heart defects or spina bifida.

The AI-assisted scans automatically took several thousand snapshots of each foetal measurement compared to three taken by a sonographer. They were found to be more reliable and could help medical professionals make decisions earlier that could improve health outcomes for the baby.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in the developed world. The standard biopsy method, called the transrectal route, involves passing a needle through the rectal lining under local anaesthetic. However, this method carries a risk of infection. Researchers have explored an alternative approach – the transperineal route – where the needle passes through the skin between the scrotum and anus.

In a trial published in Lancet Oncology and funded by the NIHR, 1,126 men undergoing prostate cancer investigations were randomly assigned to either the transrectal or transperineal biopsy. The study aimed to determine which method was better at diagnosing clinically significant cancer while assessing complications such as infections, urinary issues, and sexual function difficulties. All biopsies were performed under local anaesthetic, and patient-reported outcomes( PROMs) were collected immediately after the procedure and up to four months later. While the transperineal route was more effective at detecting cancer, it was also more painful and time-consuming, raising questions about the best approach for patient care.

Professor Richard Bryant, the study’ s Chief Investigator from the University of Oxford’ s Nuffield Department of Surgical Sciences, presented the new findings at the European Association of Urology’ s Annual Congress in Madrid this weekend. He said:“ Almost 100,000 men are investigated for prostate cancer every year in the UK, and it is extremely important that we get this right. The results from the trial now provide the evidence necessary to help urologists, and their patients, decide how best to perform prostate biopsy. There have been several excellent trials in this space over the past year with inconclusive results. We have now conducted the largest trial in this field, and are excited to provide definitive results. The results show that transperineal biopsy is better at diagnosing clinically meaningful prostate cancer, and that the men having this type of biopsy did not need antibiotics, which is important to avoid antibiotic resistance. However, it took longer to perform the transperineal biopsies compared to the transrectal route, and men told us that the new biopsy was more painful.”

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