Project opportunity at PERIsign
| Title | Project opportunity at PERIsign |
|---|---|
| Summary | Peritonitis (inflammation of the peritoneum) detection via EMG-signals. |
| Keywords | |
| TimeFrame | Autumn 2024 |
| References | |
| Prerequisites | |
| Author | |
| Supervisor | Abdallah Alabdallah & TBD |
| Level | Master |
| Status | Open |
STB INN AB is a Swedish medical device startup that was founded in 2020. The company develops a revolutionizing diagnostic aid called PERIsign.
The PERIsign system is a novel medical device to objectively detect peritonitis - inflammation of the peritoneum. Peritonitis is a potentially life-threatening condition where prompt decision-making is crucial.
Today, all over the world, patients with acute abdominal pain and suspected peritonitis are examined by the hands of physicians and most often evaluated with radiological investigations. The clinical investigations performed by doctors are subjective and uncertain. Further, radiological examinations are expensive, time-consuming, and potentially harmful for the patient as radiation can induce cancer development.
PERIsign uses four non-invasive electromyography (sEMG) sensors to detect and display involuntary abdominal guarding as a sign of peritonitis. The sensors also incorporate a pressure sensor. Using disposable electrodes, the sensors are placed on each abdominal quadrant.
STB INN AB recently performed a first clinical trial of PERIsign. During the study, the device was used to measure the abdominal muscle activity of 20 patients diagnosed with appendicitis (which is a cause of peritonitis) and 20 healthy volunteers.
There are hypotheses regarding the characteristics of the sEMG-signals in case of peritonitis. However, these are based on old scientific papers and on what we have been able to observe visually by analyzing the curves from the study. To develop a device that improves the accuracy of the assessment of abdominal pain, these characteristics need to be detailed.
This master’s thesis project is meant to build on the previous Data mining project. The aim is to by using AI/ML, analyze the data obtained from the clinical study to identify patterns/characteristics, and develop algorithms that distinguish between EMG-signals from sick patients and from healthy volunteers. These algorithms are meant to be a basis for STB INN’s continued software development.
