Canadian Researchers Compiling Global Data Set of CT Scans and X-Rays for COVID-19

University of British Columbia researchers are compiling CT scans and chest x-rays from around the world to create a global data set aimed at helping physicians determine the best treatment courses for people with COVID-19, according to a report from CTV News.

Thanks to a partnership with Amazon Web Services, the UBC team is sharing its data online for free, with the goal of helping in the battle against the novel coronavirus by using predictive modelling to better diagnose the severity of the disease and improve treatment.

Radiology resident William Parker, MD, and his research partner Savvas Nicolaou, MD, FRCPC, a professor of radiology at UBC and the director of emergency and trauma radiology at Vancouver General Hospital, began collecting CT images from colleagues in multiple countries in January. They developed an artificial intelligence algorithm to better identify the percentage of lung tissue involvement and the subtle patterns of infection documented in the CT scans and what that indicates about how a patient may fare in the long run.

Developing a better understanding of how the virus presents in CT images will help doctors identify which patients “will do better to go home and self-isolate and which ones may need more support, like ventilation and ICU admission,” Parker told CTV’s Your Morning on Friday.