2026-04-17T18:43:18Zhttps://recercat.cat/oai/request

oai:recercat.cat:10256/263832025-03-15T03:46:44Zcom_2072_452955com_2072_2054col_2072_452957

00925njm 22002777a 4500 dc Regalado, María author Carreras Blesa, Nuria author Mata Miquel, Christian author Oliver i Malagelada, Arnau author Lladó Bardera, Xavier author Agut, Thais author 2025-03 Objective: Segmentation of brain sulci in pre-term infants is crucial for monitoring their development. While magnetic resonance imaging has been used for this purpose, cranial ultrasound (cUS) is the primary imaging technique used in clinical practice. Here, we present the first study aiming to automate brain sulci segmentation in pre-term infants using ultrasound images. Methods: Our study focused on segmentation of the Sylvian fissure in a single cUS plane (C3), although this approach could be extended to other sulci and planes. We evaluated the performance of deep learning models, specifically U-Net and ResU-Net, in automating the segmentation process in two scenarios. First, we conducted cross-validation on images acquired from the same ultrasound machine. Second, we applied fine-tuning techniques to adapt the models to images acquired from different vendors. Results: The ResU-Net approach achieved Dice and Sensitivity scores of 0.777 and 0.784, respectively, in the cross-validation experiment. When applied to external datasets, results varied based on similarity to the training images. Similar images yielded comparable results, while different images showed a drop in performance. Additionally, this study highlighted the advantages of ResU-Net over U-Net, suggesting that residual connections enhance the model's ability to learn and represent complex anatomical structures. Conclusion: This study demonstrated the feasibility of using deep learning models to automatically segment the Sylvian fissure in cUS images. Accurate sonographic characterisation of cerebral sulci can improve the understanding of brain development and aid in identifying infants with different developmental trajectories, potentially impacting later functional outcomes This work was supported by grant no. PI18/00110 from the Instituto de Salud Carlos III, co-funded by the European Regional Development Fund Open Access funding provided thanks to the CRUE-CSIC agreement with Elsevier Imatges -- Segmentació Image segmentation Imatgeria mèdica Imaging systems in medicine Ecoencefalografia Ultrasonic encephalography Aprenentatge profund Deep learning Automatic Segmentation of Sylvian Fissure in Brain Ultrasound Images of Pre-Term Infants Using Deep Learning Models