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Context: 

There is a rapid rise of synthetic medical images in healthcare.

What are Synthetic Medical Images?

Synthetic medical images are images which are generated by Artificial Intelligence(AI) or computer algorithms without being captured by traditional imaging devices such as MRI, CT scans, or X-rays. 

All of these photos are created using mathematical models or artificial intelligence (AI) methods such as diffusion models, autoencoders, and generative adversarial networks (GANs).

Artificial intelligence (AI) produces synthetic pictures of people who don't exist in the real world. 

AI creates brand-new radiological images or medical scans in the medical profession that seem like real ones but aren't based on any real patient data.

How are the Synthetic Medical Images made? 

An image is compressed into a more manageable form known as the latent space by a variational autoencoder (VAE). It then attempts to reconstruct the original image from the compressed version. 

The procedure enhances the image continuously by  reducing the disparity between the original and replicated images.

A generator creates synthetic images from random data and a discriminator that determines whether the image is real or synthetic. Both improve through competition. 

The generator attempts to make its images more realistic, while the discriminator gets better at spotting fakes.

Variational Autoencoder (VAE) In Machine learning VAE is an older neural network architecture that excel at automating the process of representing raw data more efficiently for various machine learning and AI applications.  Autoencoders are helpful in compressing data and detecting anomalies in AI applications.

Advantages of synthetic medical images

Intramodality and Inter-modality translation

Translation between and within modalities can be facilitated by synthetic medical pictures. 

Intramodalit translation is the process of creating artificial images inside the same kind of imaging modality—for example, enhancing or reconstructing MRI scans using other MRI data. 

On the other hand, inter-modality translation is about producing artificial images through the translation of several imaging modalities, such as producing CT scans from MRI data. 

When some scans are unavailable or insufficient, this flexibility to switch between and within modalities is crucial. By accurately representing other kinds of data, synthetic images can close these gaps.

Privacy protection

It is another significant advantage. 

Since synthetic images are generated without patient data, they avoid privacy concerns and make it easier for researchers and healthcare providers to share and collaborate on AI development. 

Time and cost effective

Real-world medical images, such as those from MRI, CT scans, or X-rays, are expensive and time-consuming to collect. 

Synthetic medical images require less time and cost of collecting real medical data.

High demand

In healthcare, there is the demand for high-quality, annotated medical images. 

Privacy 

Patient information in actual medical photos has various privacy issues. These issues restricts how these photos can be shared between research labs and medical facilities. 

This gap can be filled by synthetic medical images, which offer a morally sound, scalable, and affordable alternative.

Challenges 

Hospital systems may become infected with deepfakes due to synthetic data techniques. 

Deepfakes have the potential to mimic real patients and introduce fictitious clinical results, which could result in inaccurate diagnoses or treatments. 

Financial exploitation could result from hospitals being used to make false claims to health insurers.

It is possible for synthetic photographs to contain errors. A synthetic brain MRI, for example, might appear to be accurate, but it might miss the minute changes in tissue density or lesion patterns that occur in actual cases.

Way Ahead

Robust Validation Systems:

Deepfakes can be identified with the use of sophisticated verification systems that use artificial intelligence (AI) to find differences between synthetic images and actual patient data.

Regulatory Standards:

Guarantee that synthetic medical data is thoroughly examined before being used in clinical settings by establishing explicit laws for its production and usage.

Education for Medical Professionals:

Healthcare professionals can be better prepared to distinguish between real and fake data by receiving training on the possible dangers and how to spot deep fakes.

Multi-Modal Data Integration:

By integrating imaging data with other patient data (such as test findings and clinical history), diagnostic accuracy can be increased and dependence on any one source can be decreased.

Sources:

HINDU

RADIOLOGY

PRACTICE QUESTION Q.Consider the following statements about the “synthetic medical images” recently seen in the news:  They are the images which are generated by Artificial Intelligence(AI) or computer algorithms without being captured by traditional imaging devices. In Synthetic images AI creates images of people who actually exist in the real world.  Synthetic medical images require more cost of collecting real medical data than traditional methods. How many of the above statements is/are incorrect? A. Only one B. Only two C. All Three D. None Answer: B Explanation: Statement 1 is correct:  Synthetic medical images are images which are generated by Artificial Intelligence(AI) or computer algorithms without being captured by traditional imaging devices such as MRI, CT scans, or X-rays.  These images are entirely constructed using mathematical models or AI techniques like generative adversarial networks (GANs), diffusion models, and autoencoders. Statement 2 is incorrect:  In Synthetic images AI creates images of people who do not actually exist in the real world.  In the medical field, the AI generates entirely new medical scans or radiological images that mimic real ones but are not derived from any actual patient data. Statement 3 is incorrect:  Advantages of synthetic medical images Intramodality and Inter-modality translation Synthetic medical images have the ability to facilitate intra- and inter-modality translation.  Intramodality translation refers to generating synthetic images within the same type of imaging modality, such as improving or reconstructing MRI scans based on other MRI data.  Inter-modality translation, on the other hand, involves generating synthetic images by translating between different types of imaging modalities, such as creating CT scans from MRI data.  This ability to move across and within modalities is important in cases where certain scans are unavailable or incomplete. Synthetic images can fill these gaps by creating accurate representations from other types of data. Privacy protection It is another significant advantage.  Since synthetic images are generated without patient data, they avoid privacy concerns and make it easier for researchers and healthcare providers to share and collaborate on AI development. Time and cost effective Real-world medical images, such as those from MRI, CT scans, or X-rays, are expensive and time-consuming to collect.  Synthetic medical images require less time and cost of collecting real medical data.