Then, when new data is imputed, the model is able to correctly perform the learned task within an acceptable accuracy.
#Bone age and chronological age how to
Machine Learning comprises a group of technologies that operates in the following way: firstly, the technique learns from a set of examples on how to perform a task, creating a model which encapsulates the knowledge to perform the task. This technology is already employed in many areas of medical research, ranging from genomics to diagnosis and prognosis of many disorders, aiming to find patterns in data and to provide useful estimates to improve decision making in the health area. In light of this scenario, a way to tackle these problems is to make use of automated methods, and a technology that is valuable in this matter is Machine Learning. Further, they can be prone to inter- and intra-rater variability, which raises ethical and legal issues, especially when considering that these assessments are done in relation to an individual being a minor or not. In a practical sense, since they are manually done by radiologists, the whole process can be time-consuming, which is aggravated by the increased demand for this activity due to the increase of individuals seeking refuge. īesides their popularity, both GP and TW methods are criticized for many reasons. This method was further updated in 2001 based on new consistent patterns of development (secular trends). The TW method was developed with data collected from 1950 to 1960, from children of average socioeconomic class in the United Kingdom. Some of these bones are evaluated and categorized into stages ranging from A to I, then a total score is calculated, which is later converted into the bone’s age. The TW method evaluates maturity scores for the radius, ulna, carpals and 13 hand short bones. The attribution of bone age is done by comparing an individual’s hand radiograph with the reference images in the atlas. The GP method is an atlas that contains reference images from hand radiographs collected from 1931 to 1942, from upper-middle class Caucasian children in Ohio, United States. Both are based on hand radiographs via the analysis of the epiphyses’ and diaphyses’ appearance. Given such circumstances, the assessment of bone age and skeletal maturity constitute an important research topic nowadays.Ĭurrently, the two most commonly used procedures for bone age assessment are the Greulich-Pyle (GP) and Tanner-Whitehouse (TW) methods. Ī report from the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) stated that individuals under the age of 18 contributed to 52% of the refugees population in 2017 and also in 2017 around 173,800 refugees children were unaccompanied or separated from their parents, in what the UN considers a “conservative estimate”. This latter aspect is extremely important given the growth in number of asylum seekers in Europe, where unaccompanied individuals under the age of 18 are granted special rights by the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of the Child, which relate to reception arrangements, access to health care, education etc. Second, from a legal standpoint, bone age assessment is important in order to identify whether an individual is a minor in a situation where verified documents are lacking. The importance of assessing an individual’s skeletal maturity or bone age and its comparison with their chronological age arises from two main angles: First, from a medical angle, the assessment of bone age is useful for the diagnosis and treatment of pediatric endocrinology, orthodontics and pediatric orthopedic disorders, in addition to also being considered in estimations of an individual’s final height. Bone age is a closely related concept to skeletal maturity, and relates to the estimation of an age based on an individual’s skeletal maturity, whereas the chronological age is calculated based solely on an individual’s date of birth. Skeletal maturity refers to the stage of development in which the bone is currently in. Other important concepts that relate to such topic are skeletal maturity, bone age and chronological age. At the end of the bone development process the epiphyseal plate is ossified, indicating that the diaphysis and epiphysis are fused. This process persists as long as cartilage remains in the growth plate (or epiphyseal plate). This happens in primary and secondary ossification centers, namely diaphysis and epiphysis, respectively, where cartilage gradually turns into bone tissue. Bone development is the process that drives changes in bones’ size, shape and degree of mineralization.
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