Artificial Intelligence for Upper Aerodigestive Tract Endoscopy and Laryngoscopy: A Guide for Physicians and State-of-the-Art Review

Objective: The endoscopic and laryngoscopic examination is paramount for laryngeal, oropharyngeal, nasopharyngeal, nasal, and oral cavity benign lesions and cancer evaluation. Nevertheless, upper aerodigestive tract (UADT) endoscopy is intrinsically operator-dependent and lacks objective quality standards. At present, there has been an increased interest in artificial intelligence (AI) applications in this area to support physicians during the examination, thus enhancing diagnostic performances. The relative novelty of this research field poses a challenge both for the reviewers and readers as clinicians often lack a specific technical background.

Data sources: Four bibliographic databases were searched: PubMed, EMBASE, Cochrane, and Google Scholar.

Review methods: A structured review of the current literature (up to September 2022) was performed. Search terms related to topics of AI, machine learning (ML), and deep learning (DL) in UADT endoscopy and laryngoscopy were identified and queried by 3 independent reviewers. Citations of selected studies were also evaluated to ensure comprehensiveness.

Conclusions: Forty-one studies were included in the review. AI and computer vision techniques were used to achieve 3 fundamental tasks in this field: classification, detection, and segmentation. All papers were summarized and reviewed.

Implications for practice: This article comprehensively reviews the latest developments in the application of ML and DL in UADT endoscopy and laryngoscopy, as well as their future clinical implications. The technical basis of AI is also explained, providing guidance for nonexpert readers to allow critical appraisal of the evaluation metrics and the most relevant quality requirements.