Every year, millions of X-ray, ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging images of arthritis patients are produced in the EU. The AutoPiX consortium, funded by the Innovative Health Initiative (IHI), the European Union and industry with 21 million euros, is pursuing the goal of using this image data as meaningful biomarkers with the help of artificial intelligence (AI). The key aspects of
The goals of the AutoPiX A central aspect is automated image analysis, in which unstructured image data is converted into quantitative biomarkers that can support diagnosis, therapy monitoring and prediction. In addition, the use of mobile apps enables the remote monitoring of patients. Photos or videos can be transmitted directly to the clinic.
Finally, innovative imaging techniques are to be developed that could replace invasive tissue diagnostics and thus offer a less stressful alternative for patients.
Millions of people suffer from rheumatoid diseases
To improve imaging biomarkers for patients with rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis and axial spondyloarthritis, the AutoPiX These immune-mediated inflammatory diseases affect millions of people in Europe - around 4 million with rheumatoid arthritis, 1.3 million with psoriatic arthritis and 3 to 5 million with axial spondyloarthritis. They face the same challenges, such as the need for timely diagnosis in non-specialized settings, early and targeted intervention and effective monitoring.
The AutoPiX consortium aims to address the critical need for better understanding of imaging in rheumatology," explains AutoPiX coordinator Daniel Aletaha from the Medical University of Vienna, "including limited access to specific techniques such as ultrasound outside reference centers and hospitals, as well as difficulties in selecting the most appropriate treatments for arthritis." AI-supported imaging biomarkers could improve precision medicine and early diagnosis and provide accessible visualizations for doctors and patients. Aletaha: "We will bring imaging closer to practitioners and patients and make it more accessible, interpretable and clinically relevant for the treatment of diseases that require a high level of expertise."
Xenofon Baraliakos, Medical Director of the Clinic for Internal Medicine and Rheumatology at Marien Hospital Herne - University Hospital of the Ruhr University Bochum: "AutoPiX gives us a unique opportunity. AutoPiX will bring together the previous pieces of arthritis imaging in large quantities, giving us a complete picture and enabling us to develop models to predict the right therapy for individual patients. All this with innovative imaging techniques that will be the standard in a few years, but are already being used today as part of the AutoPiX project."
Thomas Hügle, Head of the Department of Rheumatology at Lausanne University Hospital: "The imaging of the future is not only X-ray and MRI, but also by the patients themselves through photos and videos to detect disease characteristics such as swelling and restricted movement at an early stage. These important tools will sustainably improve the care of patients with arthritis in the long term."
The consortium brings together 17 partners from the EU, Switzerland and the USA, including academic and medical institutions, patient organizations, MedTech and IT companies as well as pharmaceutical industry partners. AutoPiX is coordinated by the Medical University of Vienna and Janssen (J&J). https://www.autopix-project.eu/
