title: Computerized contextual analysis in diagnosis.
abstract: 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.
authors.affiliation: Department of Pathology, New England Medical Center, Boston, MA.
authors.forename: D J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Zahniser
authors.forename: L M
authors.initials: LM
authors.lastname: Isenstein
authors.forename: M L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Hutchinson
mesh_terms: D016002:Discriminant Analysis; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D002583:Uterine Cervical Neoplasms / Q000473:pathology*; D014626:Vaginal Smears