Automated Pulmonary Vein Analysis for Atrial Fibrillation Case Suggestion

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Solution Overview

Problem

There is limited knowledge on how atrial fibrillation correlates to certain abnormal cardiac anatomic structures and how to predict future cases using such correlations, which hinders efficient diagnosis and treatment.

Innovation Solution

An apparatus and method using a processor to receive, process, and analyze pulmonary vein anatomy data, detecting abnormalities, and suggesting atrial fibrillation cases based on these anomalies, leveraging machine learning and image processing to automate the diagnosis process.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If manual diagnostic procedures are used to identify atrial fibrillation cases, then diagnostic accuracy can be maintained, but time consumption and workload increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvediagnostic accuracyVSAvoidtime consumption

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary automated analysis of pulmonary vein anatomy data to identify abnormal patterns and generate suggestions for potential atrial fibrillation cases before clinical review, pre-processing the data to highlight only suspicious cases that require further manual evaluation

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

An automated analysis system acts as an intermediary between raw anatomical data and clinical diagnosis, processing imaging data to generate structured suggestions that assist clinicians without replacing the final diagnostic decision, thereby reducing manual workload while maintaining diagnostic accuracy

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If comprehensive pulmonary vein anatomy analysis is performed for all patients, then prediction accuracy for atrial fibrillation improves, but computational resources and processing time increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveprediction accuracyVSAvoidcomputational resources

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The system applies different levels of analysis intensity to different regions of pulmonary vein anatomy based on their diagnostic importance, focusing computational resources on critical anatomical features most strongly correlated with atrial fibrillation while using simplified assessment for less relevant areas

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The system dynamically adjusts analysis parameters such as image resolution, segmentation detail, and feature extraction depth based on preliminary risk assessment, using full-comprehensive analysis only for cases showing initial abnormality indicators while applying reduced analysis to low-risk cases

Inventive Principle:

Principle #35Parameter changes

Data Source

PatentUS20250295349A1Apparatus and methods for automatic suggestion of atrial fibrillation cases based on a presence of abnormal pulmonary vein anatomy

Publication Date: 2025.09.25 ANUMANA INC

AI summary

Apparatus for automatic suggestion of atrial fibrillation cases as a function of a presence of abnormal pulmonary vein anatomy and methods used therein are described, wherein the apparatus includes a processor and a memory communicatively connected to the processor, wherein the memory includes instructions configuring the processor to receive query pulmonary vein anatomy data, detect at least an abnormal pulmonary vein anatomy within the received query pulmonary vein anatomy data, and suggest a case of atrial fibrillation as a function of the at least a detected abnormal pulmonary vein anatomy, wherein the query pulmonary vein anatomy data are automatically processed and analyzed.