Objectives: To investigate the management of imaging errors from panoramic radiography (PAN) datasets used in the development of machine learning (ML) models.
Methods: This systematic literature followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses and used three databases. Keywords were selected from relevant literature.
Eligibility criteria: PAN studies that used ML models and mentioned image quality concerns.
Results: Out of 400 articles, 41 papers satisfied the inclusion criteria. All the studies used ML models, with 35 papers using deep learning (DL) models. PAN quality assessment was approached in 3 ways: acknowledgement and acceptance of imaging errors in the ML model, removal of low-quality radiographs from the dataset before building the model, and application of image enhancement methods prior to model development. The criteria for determining PAN image quality varied widely across studies and were prone to bias.
Conclusions: This study revealed significant inconsistencies in the management of PAN imaging errors in ML research. However, most studies agree that such errors are detrimental when building ML models. More research is needed to understand the impact of low-quality inputs on model performance. Prospective studies may streamline image quality assessment by leveraging DL models, which excel at pattern recognition tasks.
Keywords: artificial intelligence; dental panoramic radiograph; imaging errors; quality assessment; systematic review.
© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the British Institute of Radiology and the International Association of Dentomaxillofacial Radiology.