Computerized contextual analysis in diagnosis.
Cervical cytology specimens prepared as monolayers were analyzed with a combination of high-resolution single-cell image analysis and lower-resolution contextual image analysis. For the latter, quantitative features of cluster architecture, object distribution and background were used to mimic the pathologists global assessment of a specimen. Contextual analysis correctly classified 81% of the cases for diagnosis, about on a par with the companion single-cell cytometric analysis. Contextual and single cell analysis complemented each other, yielding greater accuracy when the two methods were combined. Additional applications of contextual analysis are discussed.
Zahniser
D J
DJ
Department of Pathology, New England Medical Center, Boston, MA.
Isenstein
L M
LM
Hutchinson
M L
ML
D016002:Discriminant Analysis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D014626:Vaginal Smears