AI improves quality of colonoscopies, research shows: Northwestern Medicine

SYCAMORE AI has helped physicians performing colonoscopies achieve a 13 percent increase in the detection and removal of colorectal polyps, according to research shared by Northwestern Medicine at a Chicago-based conference in May.

Now, Medtronic GI Genius, the Food and Drug Administration-approved computer-assisted detection system using artificial intelligence that has enabled physicians to more effectively screen patients for colon cancer, will be equipped in every endoscopy room of Northwestern Medicines, nine acute care hospitals and four outpatient locations. Included are Northwestern Medicines Kishwaukee Hospital, McHenry Hospital and Huntley Hospital.

Dr. David Manuel, a gastroenterologist at Northwestern Medicine in Sycamore, said doctors who perform colonoscopies rely on white light to illuminate patients’ bowels. That light allows doctors to see through a small camera to look for polyps, and that process will still be used now that AI is on the scene.

But now there’s a processor that tries to identify anomalies as well as it can using artificial intelligence, Manuel said. It basically shows up as a box on the screen and it’s up to the endoscopist to determine, Hey, is this real or is this something that’s just a false alarm?

Since the procedure hasn’t actually changed, patients receiving a colonoscopy at Northwestern Medicine will, in all likelihood, not realize that the AI ​​essentially acts as a second set of eyes, or a second opinion, for their procedure. Manuel said.

Colorectal polyp detection rates are important to gastroenterologists because it is the best way to measure the quality of colonoscopy exams administered to patients.

The higher the adenoma detection rate, or the rate of polyps, the more likely you are to essentially prevent colon cancer, Manuel said. Because what we know about colon cancer is that these cancers start out as colon polyps. If we can find the polyps at an early stage [and] remove them, we can prevent colon cancer from developing down the road.

So anything that can help us identify polyps will, in turn, help us reduce the development of colon cancer.

Over a six-month period, 21 gastroenterologists performed 4,820 colonoscopies in a Northwestern Medicine study; nine of these medical professionals used computer-assisted tracking software most of the time.

According to a press release, gastroenterologists who used the AI ​​software had significantly higher polyp detection and removal rates.

Our team is constantly developing new ways to be more accurate and efficient in the care we provide. It is incredibly gratifying to know that this technology will be available to patients at every Northwestern Medicine location where colonoscopies are performed.

John Pandolfino, chief of gastroenterology and hepatology at Northwestern Medicine

Adenomas, the most common type of colorectal polyp, were found and removed at a higher rate by physicians who used the software than by those who didn’t, and previous research has shown that every 1% increase in the rate of detection of the adenoma is associated with a 3% decrease in the risk of cancer within five years of a colonoscopy, according to the release.

This means that computer-assisted colonoscopies could reduce future colon cancer diagnoses by up to 39%, said Dr. Rajesh Keswani, director of endoscopy for Northwestern Memorial Hospital and director of quality for Northwestern Medicine Digestive Health Center. The results may also be more dramatic in suburban or rural hospitals, where fewer screening colonoscopies are performed and there may be greater variation in quality.

Dr. John Pandolfino, chief of gastroenterology and hepatology at Northwestern Medicine, also leads the Center for Artificial Intelligence and Mathematics in Gastroenterology, a first-of-its-kind program that works with engineers at Northwestern University’s McCormick School of Engineering to create new services doctors.

He said Northwestern Medicines’ investment in artificial intelligence signals the commitment of healthcare providers to improve patient care.

Our team is constantly developing new ways to be more accurate and efficient in the care we provide, Pandolfino said. It is incredibly gratifying to know that this technology will be available to patients at every Northwestern Medicine location where colonoscopies are performed.