Multimodal deep learning with feature level fusion for identification of choroidal neovascularization activity in age-related macular degeneration

Purpose: This study aimed to determine the efficacy of a multimodal deep learning (DL) model using optical coherence tomography (OCT) and optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) images for the assessment of choroidal neovascularization (CNV) in neovascular age-related macular degeneration (AMD).

Methods: This retrospective and cross-sectional study was performed at a multicentre, and the inclusion criteria were age >50 years and a diagnosis of typical neovascular AMD. The OCT and OCTA data for an internal data set and two external data sets were collected. A DL model was developed with a novel feature-level fusion (FLF) method utilized to combine the multimodal data. The results were compared with identification performed by an ophthalmologist. The best model was tested on two external data sets to show its potential for clinical use.

Results: Our best model achieved an accuracy of 95.5% and an area under the curve (AUC) of 0.9796 on multimodal data inputs for the internal data set, which is comparable to the performance of retinal specialists. The proposed model reached an accuracy of 100.00% and an AUC of 1.0 for the Ningbo data set, and these performance indicators were 90.48% and an AUC of 0.9727 for the Jinhua data set.

Conclusion: The FLF method is feasible and highly accurate, and could enhance the power of the existing computer-aided diagnosis systems. The bi-modal computer-aided diagnosis (CADx) system for the automated identification of CNV activity is an accurate and promising tool in the realm of public health.