[Medical image segmentation data augmentation method based on channel weight and data-efficient features].

Journal: Sheng wu yi xue gong cheng xue za zhi = Journal of biomedical engineering = Shengwu yixue gongchengxue zazhi
Published Date:

Abstract

In computer-aided medical diagnosis, obtaining labeled medical image data is expensive, while there is a high demand for model interpretability. However, most deep learning models currently require a large amount of data and lack interpretability. To address these challenges, this paper proposes a novel data augmentation method for medical image segmentation. The uniqueness and advantages of this method lie in the utilization of gradient-weighted class activation mapping to extract data efficient features, which are then fused with the original image. Subsequently, a new channel weight feature extractor is constructed to learn the weights between different channels. This approach achieves non-destructive data augmentation effects, enhancing the model's performance, data efficiency, and interpretability. Applying the method of this paper to the Hyper-Kvasir dataset, the intersection over union (IoU) and Dice of the U-net were improved, respectively; and on the ISIC-Archive dataset, the IoU and Dice of the DeepLabV3+ were also improved respectively. Furthermore, even when the training data is reduced to 70 %, the proposed method can still achieve performance that is 95 % of that achieved with the entire dataset, indicating its good data efficiency. Moreover, the data-efficient features used in the method have interpretable information built-in, which enhances the interpretability of the model. The method has excellent universality, is plug-and-play, applicable to various segmentation methods, and does not require modification of the network structure, thus it is easy to integrate into existing medical image segmentation method, enhancing the convenience of future research and applications.

Authors

  • Xing Wu
  • Chenjie Tao
    School of Computer Engineering and Science, Shanghai University, Shanghai 200444, P. R. China.
  • Zhi Li
    Department of Nursing, Zhongshan Hospital of Traditional Chinese Medicine Affiliated to Guangzhou University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Zhongshan, China.
  • Jian Zhang
    College of Pharmacy, Ningxia Medical University, Yinchuan, NingxiaHui Autonomous Region, China.
  • Qun Sun
    School of Mechanical and Automotive Engineering, Liaocheng University, Liaocheng, China.
  • Xianhua Han
  • Yanwei Chen
    College of Information Science and Engineering, Ritsumeikan University, Shiga-Ken 525-8577, Japan.