Noncontact Heart and Respiratory Rate Monitoring of Preterm Infants Based on a Computer Vision System: Protocol for a Method Comparison Study

Kim Gibson; Ali Al-Naji; Julie-Anne Fleet; Mary Steen; Javaan Chahl; Jasmine Huynh; Scott Morris

doi:10.2196/13400

Noncontact Heart and Respiratory Rate Monitoring of Preterm Infants Based on a Computer Vision System: Protocol for a Method Comparison Study

JMIR Res Protoc. 2019 Aug 29;8(8):e13400. doi: 10.2196/13400.

Authors

Kim Gibson¹, Ali Al-Naji², Julie-Anne Fleet¹, Mary Steen¹, Javaan Chahl³, Jasmine Huynh³, Scott Morris^{4

5}

Affiliations

¹ School of Nursing and Midwifery, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia.
² Electrical Engineering Technical College, Middle Technical University, Baghdad, Iraq.
³ School of Engineering, University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia.
⁴ College of Medicine and Public Health, Flinders University, Adelaide, Australia.
⁵ Neonatal Unit, Flinders Medical Centre, Adelaide, Australia.

PMID: 31469077
PMCID: PMC6786848
DOI: 10.2196/13400

Abstract

Background: Biomedical research in the application of noncontact methods to measure heart rate (HR) and respiratory rate (RR) in the neonatal population has produced mixed results. This paper describes and discusses a protocol for conducting a method comparison study, which aims to determine the accuracy of a proposed noncontact computer vision system to detect HR and RR relative to the HR and RR obtained by 3-lead electrocardiogram (ECG) in preterm infants in the neonatal unit.

Objective: The aim of this preliminary study is to determine the accuracy of a proposed noncontact computer vision system to detect HR and RR relative to the HR and RR obtained by 3-lead ECG in preterm infants in the neonatal unit.

Methods: A single-center cross-sectional study was planned to be conducted in the neonatal unit at Flinders Medical Centre, South Australia, in May 2018. A total of 10 neonates and their ECG monitors will be filmed concurrently for 10 min using digital cameras. Advanced image processing techniques are to be applied later to determine their physiological data at 3 intervals. These data will then be compared with the ECG readings at the same points in time.

Results: Study enrolment began in May 2018. Results of this study were published in July 2019.

Conclusions: The study will analyze the data obtained by the noncontact system in comparison to data obtained by ECG, identify factors that may influence data extraction and accuracy when filming infants, and provide recommendations for how this noncontact system may be implemented into clinical applications.

International registered report identifier (irrid): RR1-10.2196/13400.

Keywords: computers; electrocardiography; heart rate; infant; respiratory rate.

©Kim Gibson, Ali Al-Naji, Julie-Anne Fleet, Mary Steen, Javaan Chahl, Jasmine Huynh, Scott Morris. Originally published in JMIR Research Protocols (http://www.researchprotocols.org), 29.08.2019.