Computer-aided diagnosis in rheumatic diseases using ultrasound: an overview

Clinical evaluation of rheumatic and musculoskeletal diseases through images is a challenge for the beginner rheumatologist since image diagnosis is an expert task with a long learning curve. The aim of this work was to present a narrative review on the main ultrasound computer-aided diagnosis systems that may help clinicians thanks to the progress made in the application of artificial intelligence techniques. We performed a literature review searching for original articles in seven repositories, from 1970 to 2019, and identified 11 main methods currently used in ultrasound computer-aided diagnosis systems. Also, we found that rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus, and idiopathic inflammatory myopathies are the four musculoskeletal and rheumatic diseases most studied that use these innovative systems, with an overall accuracy of > 75%.