AI-Driven Segmentation and Automated Analysis of the Whole Sagittal Spine from X-ray Images for Spinopelvic Parameter Evaluation

Abstract

Spinal–pelvic parameters are utilized in orthopedics for assessing patients’ curvature and body alignment in diagnosing, treating, and planning surgeries for spinal and pelvic disorders. Segmenting and autodetecting the whole spine from lateral radiographs is challenging. Recent efforts have employed deep learning techniques to automate the segmentation and analysis of whole-spine lateral radiographs. This study aims to develop an artificial intelligence (AI)-based deep learning approach for the automated segmentation, alignment, and measurement of spinal–pelvic parameters through whole-spine lateral radiographs. We conducted the study on 932 annotated images from various spinal pathologies. Using a deep learning (DL) model, anatomical landmarks of the cervical, thoracic, lumbar vertebrae, sacrum, and femoral head were automatically distinguished. The algorithm was designed to measure 13 radiographic alignment and spinal–pelvic parameters from the whole-spine lateral radiographs. Training data comprised 748 digital radiographic (DR) X-ray images, while 90 X-ray images were used for validation. Another set of 90 X-ray images served as the test set. Inter-rater reliability between orthopedic spine specialists, orthopedic residents, and the DL model was evaluated using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). The segmentation accuracy for anatomical landmarks was within an acceptable range (median error: 1.7–4.1 mm). The inter-rater reliability between the proposed DL model and individual experts was fair to good for measurements of spinal curvature characteristics (all ICC values > 0.62). The developed DL model in this study demonstrated good levels of inter-rater reliability for predicting anatomical landmark positions and measuring radiographic alignment and spinal–pelvic parameters. Automated segmentation and analysis of whole-spine lateral radiographs using deep learning offers a promising tool to enhance accuracy and efficiency in orthopedic diagnostics and treatments.