Standardizing Cervical Spine MRI for AI: A Mathematically Formalized Preprocessing and Harmonization Pipeline
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29194/Keywords:
Degenerative Cervical Myelopathy, ComBat Harmonization, Radiomics Reproducibility, Multi-Scanner, Standardization, Good Health and Well-being (Sustainable Development Goal- SDG 3), Industry, Innovation, Infrastructure (SDG 9)Abstract
The standardization and preprocessing decisions determine the performance, reproducibility and generalizability of Artificial Intelligence (AI) models in cervical spine Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI). In this research, the author suggests a six-step standardized preprocessing pipeline that can help with the reliable analysis of heterogeneous MRI data using AI. It is obtained by the pipeline based on recurrent methodological patterns found in the literature, focusing on the operations reported to stabilize image intensity distribution and reduce unwanted sources of variability. A systematic literature review was screened on 2,882 records, and 43 articles were included per the inclusion criteria. Due to the large variability of imaging procedures, preprocessing plans, and reported outcomes metrics, no quantitative meta-analysis was performed and a qualitative synthesis was done. Basic methods such as segmentation, denoising, intensity normalization, augmentation, bias-field correction were consistently reported to improve AI performance. Studies evaluating tasks such as normalization and automated segmentation reported accuracies of 94% to 99.95%. Moreover, less-specific harmonization methods like Combatting Batch Effects (ComBat), z-score normalization and histogram matching, and Generative Adversarial Network (GAN)-based ones were also often attributed with lower scanner- and site-based variations. Regardless of these improvements, the AI workflow remains unstable because of the irregularity of predefined parameters, unequal standards of acquisition, and lack of methodological reporting. In efforts to deal with such challenges, the current work proposes a methodical six-stage preprocessing model that consists of quality control, noise removal, intensity normalization, anatomical segmentation, harmonization and validation. The suggested workflow model offers a practical and transparent basis of clinically translatable AI usage in cervical spine MRI based on conventional mathematical equations and clear documentation.
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