Kettering Health Medical Group Uses GI Genius AI Technology for Colonoscopies

Kettering Health Medical Group Gastroenterology was the first in the Dayton area to offer colonoscopies using a new device that helps overcome challenges associated with finding polyps during a colonoscopy.

Obtaining visuals of polyps can be difficult. They vary in size, shape, texture, and color; some "hide" under colonic folds. Poor light, reflections within the field of view, and awkward camera angles also create challenges.

GI Genius? integrates with standard video endoscopy equipment and uses artificial intelligence algorithms to highlight possible lesions. It signals to the clinician that further assessment may be needed, such as a closer visual inspection, tissue sampling, removal, or ablation.

Flagging lesions to prompt a closer look

"This technology is a great enhancement—it's like having another expert in the room," says Gastroenterologist Dr. Shashank Sarvepalli. Patients' eyes light up when I tell them about it. They appreciate the importance of this enhanced screening modality, which is available for essentially the same cost to them as a standard high-definition colonoscopy."

When the technology identifies a possible lesion during a colonoscopy, it generates a marker, which looks like a green box, and superimposes it on the video from the endoscope camera. The clinician then decides whether the identified region contains a suspected lesion and, if so, how to manage it.

GI Genius is shown to have a 99.7% sensitivity rate and less than 1% false positives. Importantly, it improves the adenoma detection rate (ADR) by 14%. A physician's ADR is a reliable measure of the quality of colonoscopic examination. Studies show that endoscopists with a higher ADR during screening colonoscopy more effectively protect their patients from colorectal cancer.

Lowering the risk of "missed" polyps

When left untreated, precancerous polyps have the potential to grow and become malignant. About 5% of patients who undergo a colonoscopy develop colon cancer before their next colonoscopy. Most of these cancers arise from "missed" polyps.

GI Genius is one of a few recent colonoscopy enhancements designed to reduce the rate of missed polyps. Another is Endocuff Vision?, a device that is attached to the distal end of a colonoscope and used to manipulate colonic folds to maintain the viewable mucosa.

"Endocuff allows us to look behind the folds, and GI Genius signals potential polyps that need extended evaluation," Dr. Sarvepalli says. "Using these two technologies together has a synergistic effect that will help us reduce our miss rate more than either technology alone can. It's exciting to offer these innovations to improve care for patients right here in Dayton."

GI Genius by the numbers

The Food and Drug Administration approved GI Genius in April 2021. Results from a multicenter, prospective, randomized, and controlled study in Italy show that, compared to standard high-definition colonoscopy, colonoscopy with GI Genius achieved a

• 14% absolute increase in adenoma detection rate
• 50% greater likelihood of detecting multiple polyps
• 53% greater likelihood of detecting polyps in the distal colon
• 28% greater likelihood of detecting polyps in the proximal colon