How Intelligent Is Artificial Intelligence?

How Intelligent Is Artificial Intelligence?

AI For Human And Veterinary Radiology

Radiology Artificial Intelligence, commonly referred to as AI, is in full development, and the FDA is actively testing AI in human radiology. In veterinary radiology we’re not far behind and are quickly catching up. Veterinary medicine AI product development’s greatest strength is also its greatest weakness. That is, oversight, or more specifically, the lack of oversight by a governing body.

In human radiology, AI products require FDA oversight and approval prior to coming to market (see the American Association of Veterinary Radiologists GMLP write-up here to learn more. Some veterinary products do fall under FDA oversight, BUT veterinary radiology AI isn’t one of them. This means a veterinary radiology AI company can develop quickly, but also has no formal obligation to demonstrate that its product actually works.

If a company doesn’t provide clinical test results, it is up to you, the veterinarian, to determine the worthiness of the product. A true ‘caveat emptor.’

Assessment Is Critical

So how should a veterinarian assess a veterinary radiology AI product? The same way the entire medical community evaluates any diagnostic test for a condition, by measuring clinical performance.

The two standard measures of clinical performance are SENSITIVITY and SPECIFICITY.

To better understand how these measures can assist us to asses clinical performance, we will briefly revisit a couple of formulas from that old favorite – statistics class.

Sensitivity And Specificity

SENSITIVITY is the probability that a test will identify a patient who HAS a condition (true positive). It is calculated by the following formula:

formula: sensitivity = true positives/(true positives + false negatives)
formula: specificity = true negatives/(true negatives + false positives)

SPECIFICITY is the probability a test will correctly identify a patient who DOES NOT have a condition (true negative). It is calculated by the following formula:

The Confusion Matrix

These two standard measures of clinical performance lead us to the four outcomes possible for each patient:

True Positive  |  False Positive  |  True Negative  |  False Negative

The four outcomes are typically reported in a 2 x 2 table called a confusion matrix, showing the total numbers of true and false positives and negatives. A generic example is shown here next.

A Typical Confusion Matrix

Name of Condition or Disease

Total Number of Cases Measured

% Sensitivity

% Specificity

Radiologist Positive Radiologist Negative
AI Positive # of cases # of cases
AI Negative # of cases # of cases

Vetology’s AI Testing

Vetology’s AI testing evaluates AI results against veterinary radiologist reports as a reference standard. The results and confusion matrix tables are displayed just below on this page.

The Truth Is In The Confusion Matrix

To help you evaluate a product’s performance, always ask an AI vendor for their confusion matrix tables.

Also, be aware that an AI product MUST be 100% autonomous to have a valid result. If a human intervenes during any part of the result creation, it’s not artificial intelligence, it’s human intelligence.

Next we show the confusion matrix for several diseases among 75 random cases:

Cardiomegaly

47 Cases

90% Sensitivity

76% Specificity

Radiologist Positive Radiologist Negative
AI Positive 17 19
AI Negative 3 8

Heart Failure

39 Cases

100% Sensitivity

89% Specificity

Radiologist Positive Radiologist Negative
AI Positive 3 4
AI Negative 0 32

Dynamic Airway Pattern

30 Cases

100% Sensitivity

85% Specificity

Radiologist Positive Radiologist Negative
AI Positive 3 4
AI Negative 0 23

Dynamic Airway Collapse

30 Cases

67% Sensitivity

93% Specificity

Radiologist Positive Radiologist Negative
AI Positive 2 2
AI Negative 1 25

Buyers Beware

As we said earlier in this article, AI brings to the forefront of your purchase decision-making, the phrase ‘caveat emptor,’ or buyer beware. Make sure you review the provider’s confusion matrix tables (if they have them at all), and make sure their AI is fully autonomous, else you’ll just be buying expensive human intelligence.

At Vetology, we assertively and proactively test ourselves and continually train and improve the AI for everyone’s benefit. We are as transparent as possible. We have the data and are willing to publish it.

If you have any questions about our veterinary radiology software or services, we encourage you to contact us..

Sedecal Announces Partnership with Vetology 

Sedecal Announces Partnership with Vetology 

Vetology now comes pre-configured on Sedecal x-ray systems

May 23, 2020 (San Diego, CA)  – Sedecal creates high quality x-ray systems that now come pre-configured for teleradiology and AI quick reads. It’s all automated and allows for a streamlined workflow from your x-ray system straight to the Vetology cloud.

Your digital images are quickly analyzed, and evaluations are sent to you in under five minutes. The results? Fewer treatment delays, increased confidence, and improved patient care and client satisfaction.

Learn more about Vetology’s partnership with Sedcal x-ray system.

The most advanced teleradiology solution on the market, plus:

Contact us for a demo! We look forward to learning how we can help.

Sedecal Announces Partnership with Vetology 

Patterson Veterinary Announces Partnership with Vetology

Vetology AI Radiograph Analysis Software automates analysis of radiograph images, delivers reports in minutes

January 16, 2020 (Greeley, CO) – Patterson Veterinary today announced an exclusive partnership with Vetology to offer Vetology AI Radiograph Analysis Software as part of the company’s growing portfolio of software solutions.
Vetology AI provides the latest in Artificial Intelligence radiology to provide increased speed and productivity for veterinarians by allowing them the ability to obtain remote radiograph read reports in approximately three minutes.

“The most valuable asset our customers have to offer is their time,” said Kevin Pohlman, president, Patterson Veterinary. “We realize that waiting on a radiology report can be a frustratingly long process, especially at the end of the workday. We chose to partner with Vetology because their solution is fast, accurate, and cost-effective, allowing our customers to better utilize their time.”

Additionally, Vetology says the decision to partner with Patterson was an easy one, based on the two companies’ shared commitment to their customers.

“Vetology AI understands the importance of working with only the best veterinary companies,” said Dr. Seth Wallack, board certified veterinary radiologist and founder, Vetology.

“Working with Patterson is an easy choice as it’s an internationally recognized best in class company and has an ongoing commitment to advancing the veterinary profession.”

For Patterson, this partnership supports Patterson Veterinary Technology’s key objective of providing the best, most relevant and most innovative technology solutions to veterinarian practices.

“Finding the right partners that bring value to our customers is a top priority for our organization,” adds Pohlman.

“Patterson Veterinary Technology is dedicated to providing the most innovative technology solutions to veterinarian’s practices, and this partnership with Vetology allows us to continue supporting that goal.”

To learn more, contact Vetology for a demo.

ABOUT VETOLOGY

Founded in 2010 and headquartered in San Diego, California, Vetology® provides innovative and emerging technology solutions for the veterinary community. The company continues to rapidly grow and now serves over 3,000 veterinary hospitals worldwide and offers SAAS products that facilitate the highest quality of patient care and services.

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