Citations

Abstract Objectives Traditional laboratory regulatory frameworks provide robust guidance for conventional clinical testing but lack requirements for data documentation for artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) solutions. This gap creates significant risks since AI solutions directly inherit patterns, biases, and limitations from their training data. Here, we describe the development and implementation of a comprehensive data documentation checklist with accompanying data lineage for use within an AI lifecycle framework for clinical laboratories. Methods Building on the previously established Clinical AI Readiness Evaluator (CARE) framework, we developed a comprehensive data checklist and data lineage methodology through a multiphase process, including (1) comprehensive review of existing AI/ML data documentation frameworks, (2) focused meetings with 3 institutional AI operations teams, and (3) 3 rounds of iterative refinement by our multidisciplinary team. The checklist’s effectiveness was then assessed using 3 diverse AI/ML projects moving through the CARE framework. Results The CARE Data Checklist and Data Lineage provide a structured approach to documenting critical aspects of datasets used in AI/ML projects, including data composition, demographics, collection methods, labeling processes, usage constraints, maintenance requirements, and a data readiness assessment. The checklist addresses unique data-centric challenges of AI/ML applications, facilitating transparency, reproducibility, and regulatory compliance. Conclusions The CARE Data Checklist and Data Lineage serve as both a technical guide and a communication tool bridging gaps between technical and clinical stakeholders. By working on these documents early in the AI lifecycle, laboratories can anticipate and address data-related challenges, ultimately saving time, optimizing resources, and improving the reliability of AI-augmented laboratory solutions.

OBJECTIVE Electrical stimulation mapping is a widely used technique to determine functional localization for medically refractory epilepsy. Sites where stimulation interferes with naming are often focal regions of the frontal and temporal cortex. The extent to which these crucial sites remain in the same location over time in an individual adult patient has not yet been established. The aim of this study was to determine whether cortical naming sites identified using stimulation mapping are stable in their anatomical location over time in adult patients with medically refractory epilepsy. METHODS Twenty-two patients who underwent electrical stimulation mapping for medically refractory epilepsy during surgical interventions separated by more than 1 year between 1967 and 2005 were included. A median of 8.35 years elapsed between mappings. The mean age at the first operation was 27.7 (range 10–39) years. Fourteen patients were female. Mapping occurred under two different conditions: intraoperatively in procedures conducted under local anesthesia or extraoperatively through implanted grid electrodes. A Bayesian hierarchical model of language site locations across repeated interventions was used to assess the stability of locations of stimulation-evoked interference in language naming. RESULTS Sites where electrical stimulation interferes with language naming were separated by a median of 0.6 cm between the 2 mappings. Eighty-six percent of the mapped sites related to language naming at the second operation were within 1.5 cm of a site identified at the first operation, 61% within 1 cm, and 36% within 0.5 cm. However, in 2 patients, none of the identified language naming sites at the second operation were within 1.5 cm of the sites from the first operation. CONCLUSIONS This unique, long-term series of neurosurgical mappings reveals that language naming sites in the cortex of adult patients with epilepsy show substantial long-term stability over many years. However, rare relocation of these sites does occur in some patients over many years.

Abstract Background White matter hyperintensities (WMH) are widely used to assess cerebral small vessel disease (SVD) but reflect late-stage injury. Diffusion MRI based biomarkers have been proposed to capture earlier SVD-related microstructural damage but their temporal progression relative to WMH and the risk factors associated with this progression have not been explored. Methods We analyzed longitudinal neuroimaging data from 2,047 participants from a population-based cohort study (aged 49-101 years, 47% female). Using multi-output nonlinear mixed-effects models, we characterized the temporal progression of WMH and four diffusion MRI based biomarkers: fractional anisotropy of the genu of the corpus callosum (Genu-FA), peak width of skeletonized mean diffusivity (PSMD), free water (FW), and Arteriolosclerosis-score (ARTS). Models incorporated participant-specific time shifts, correlations between biomarkers, and effects of risk factors (sex, education, APOE ε4 status, and cardiometabolic conditions). Results ARTS, Genu-FA, FW, and PSMD became abnormal in 50% of the study population 16, 12, 10, and 7 years before WMH, respectively. Global markers (ARTS, FW, PSMD, WMH) were correlated, indicating shared substrates of widespread white matter injury. Genu-FA, a vascular risk microstructural injury biomarker, was weakly coupled with WMH and had an earlier but more linear worsening across adulthood. Cardiometabolic conditions predicted earlier worsening of all biomarkers. Females showed earlier WMH, Genu-FA, and ARTS abnormalities whereas males exhibited earlier PSMD and FW abnormalities. Conclusions Diffusion MRI based biomarkers capture microstructural injury at least a decade before appearance of WMH, revealing a prolonged phase of early SVD and highlighting their potential for SVD prevention.

Abstract Extra-axial chordoma (EAC) is a very rare, malignant tumor with metastatic potential that arises in the extra-axial skeleton and soft tissues. We report the case of a 51-year-old right-handed male with EAC of the left capitate. He underwent capitate resection and wrist arthrodesis utilizing scaphoid autograft with the treatment goal of minimizing risk of tumor recurrence and metastasis while maximizing hand and wrist function. His radiographic outcome demonstrated union of his arthrodesis site. However, 7 months postoperatively, he started experiencing increased hand and wrist pain and was found to have early tumor reoccurrence. Few cases of EAC have been reported in the literature. EAC is typically treated with resection alone, although there is a limited role for chemotherapy and radiation in the setting of locally reoccurring or metastatic disease. Functional outcomes of the affected extremity and survival outcomes vary widely. This is the first report in the literature of EAC of a single carpal bone and describes an innovative technique for definitive surgical treatment of this rare tumor. Utilization of scaphoid autograft for wrist arthrodesis in the setting of capitate resection allows the use of autograft in a wrist arthrodesis without the additional morbidity of iliac crest bone grafting. This case also demonstrates the importance of appropriate diagnosis and oncologic technique at the index surgery.

ABSTRACT Background Acute heart failure (AHF) exhibits marked heterogeneity in diastolic hemodynamics, yet comprehensive echocardiographic assessment of diastolic function (DF) and filling pressure (FP) is often infeasible. We evaluated whether artificial intelligence–enabled electrocardiography (AI-ECG) could provide scalable DF grading and FP estimation in hospitalized AHF patients. Methods We retrospectively studied adults hospitalized for AHF across Mayo Clinic sites (2013–2023) who received ≥1 dose of intravenous loop diuretic and had paired 12-lead ECG and TTE. The previously validated AI-ECG DF model was applied without retraining to generate four DF grades and a continuous FP probability. Clinical outcomes were all-cause mortality and heart failure rehospitalization. Associations with clinical severity markers and echocardiographic indices were examined. Kaplan–Meier survival analysis and adjusted multivariable Cox proportional hazards models were performed. Exploratory analyses examine the kinetics of change in FP probability and impact on mortality. Results Among 11,513 patients (median age 75 years, 39% female), AI-ECG DF grading was feasible in 100%, whereas echocardiographic DF was indeterminate in 44% of clinically eligible patients. In 2,582 patients with determinate echocardiographic DF, AI-ECG FP probability discriminated TTE Grade 2–3 dysfunction with AUC 0.85 (95% CI 0.83 – 0.86). Higher AI-ECG DF grades were associated with higher comorbidity burden, worse NYHA class, elevated NT-proBNP, higher MAGGIC scores, elevated PCWP, and more advanced structural remodeling. After multivariable adjustment, AI-ECG DF remained independently associated with mortality (hazard ratio [HR] 1.25, 95% CI 1.16–1.35 for Grade 2; HR 1.44, 95% CI 1.33–1.56 for Grade 3 versus Normal/Grade 1). Combining AI-ECG DF with MAGGIC scores yielded ordered risk gradients, with highest mortality in patients with both high MAGGIC and Grade 2–3 DF. Among patients with serial ECGs, improvement in FP probability was independently associated with lower mortality (HR 0.85, 95% CI 0.79–0.91), whereas worsening did not show a consistent adverse gradient beyond baseline DF. Conclusions In a large, geographically diverse AHF cohort, AI-ECG DF grading was universally feasible, correlated with established hemodynamic severity markers, and provided independent prognostic information beyond established risk factors, supporting its role as a pragmatic, scalable diastolic biomarker in AHF. CLINICAL PERSPECTIVE What Is New? In 11,513 hospitalized acute heart failure (HF) patients, artificial intelligence-enabled electrocardiography provided diastolic function grading in 100% of patients from a single 12-lead ECG without requiring additional clinical variables, compared with 56% feasibility for guideline-based echocardiography grading. AI-ECG diastolic function grades correlated with established marker of severity (NYHA functional class, NT-proBNP, MAGGIC risk scores, and pulmonary capillary wedge pressure) and remained independently associated with both mortality and HF rehospitalization after multivariable adjustment. Serial AI-ECG measurements identified post-discharge filling pressure trajectories, with improvement independently associated with 15% lower mortality, a first demonstration that longitudinal ECG assessment can track post-discharge hemodynamic recovery. What Are the Clinical Implications? AI-ECG transforms the universally obtained 12-lead ECG into an actionable hemodynamic biomarker that addresses the critical gap when echocardiographic diastolic function assessment is indeterminate or unavailable in acute HF patients. Despite markedly different hemodynamic severity and long-term outcomes across AI-ECG diastolic function grades, hospitalization length of stay did not differ, suggesting advanced diastolic dysfunction represents occult risk not easily recognized during routine acute care and highlighting the need for improved post-discharge risk stratification. The continuous filling pressure probability metric enables longitudinal monitoring of post-discharge hemodynamic status using serial routine ECGs, potentially identifying patients requiring intensified follow-up or specialist referral.

Abstract Background Conventional MRI cannot reliably distinguish radiation necrosis (RN) from recurrent metastasis after cranial radiotherapy, as both can show similar enhancement despite different biology. We tested whether these entities are mechanically non-equivalent in vivo and separable by MRE-derived viscoelastic metrics and perilesional interface-instability features. Methods In a prospective, histopathology-anchored cohort, 11 post-radiotherapy enhancing lesions were classified as RN (n=3) or recurrent/progressive tumor (n=8). MRE was acquired at 3.0 T with single-frequency 60-Hz excitation to derive storage modulus (G′), loss modulus (G″), and complex shear modulus magnitude (|G*|). Co-primary endpoints were median tumor G′ and |G*|, each tested one-sided (RN > tumor) with Holm correction across the two co-primary tests. Median tumor G″ was tested two-sided. A prespecified secondary 6-endpoint family (absolute and tumor/NAWM-normalized G′, G″, and |G*|) was analyzed with Benjamini–Hochberg FDR control. Exploratory instability mapping in a 0–6 mm peritumoral shell generated interface-topology metrics, including convexity. Results Absolute tumor-core medians were higher in RN than tumor for |G*| (1.79 vs 1.32 kPa; Cliff’s δ=0.67; q=0.10), G′ (1.62 vs 1.09 kPa; δ=0.50; q=0.14), and G″ (0.81 vs 0.46 kPa; δ=0.75; q=0.10). NAWM normalization improved separation: tumor/NAWM |G*| (2.26 vs 1.41; δ=0.92; q=0.04) and tumor/NAWM G″ (2.67 vs 0.87; δ=1.00; q=0.04) were FDR-significant. Convexity also differentiated RN from tumor (0.49 vs 0.36; δ=1.00; MWU p=0.01). Conclusions Tumor/NAWM G″, tumor/NAWM |G*|, convexity, and tumor G″ emerged as the strongest candidate features, indicating that RN is mechanically harder and more dissipative than recurrent metastasis. Signal strength was high (Cliff’s δ up to 1.00) but should be interpreted cautiously given sample size. Exploratory analyses further suggest that instability mapping captures biologically relevant interface behavior. These findings support a mechanics-based RN-versus-recurrence framework and justify prespecified, preregistered external validation.

Abstract Rare Mendelian disorders affect 300-400 million people globally. Although genetic testing has become widely adopted, gene-specific evidence for tailored variant interpretation remains scattered across resources. We present Gene Portals, a framework for gene-centered multimodal knowledge bases that co-localize expert-harmonized clinical data, functional assays, population variation, structural annotations and gene-specific ACMG/AMP specifications within a single resource. A modular interface integrates this unified evidence with VCEP-refined ACMG specifications to enable automated gene-specific variant classification, infer molecular mechanisms, and support cross-gene analyses. We demonstrate the framework’s utility across five Gene portals spanning eleven neurodevelopmental disorder-associated genes, integrating data from 4,423 individuals with 2,838 unique variants, 36,149 ClinVar submissions, and 1,044 expert-curated molecular readouts. By organizing evidence that is otherwise dispersed across multiple sources into a unified, queryable framework, the SCN, GRIN, CACNA1A, SATB2 and SLC6A1 Gene Portals became widely used community resources and provide an extensible template for standardized rare-disease variant interpretation and mechanism-aware discovery.

Abstract Background: The choice of analysis method and primary endpoint can have a major impact on the results of a clinical trial. The power of these analysis methods is affected by the response patterns, response distributions, autocorrelations, missing values, and the number of times the endpoint is evaluated. Guidelines are needed to help investigators select statistical methods that give investigators the best chance of finding an intervention effect if one truly exists. Methods: Monte Carlo methods were used to determine how different endpoints are affected by changes in study assumptions. Copula simulation methods were applied to prior Alliance hot flash and CIPN studies to determine which endpoints would provide the highest power for future studies. Results: Longitudinal analyses had higher power if there was a plateau response, there were fewer missing values, responses were collected more often, and there was lower correlation between responses from the same subject. Having skewed data did not greatly affect power. Prior hot flash and CIPN studies showed skewed data, plateau response rates, and very high autocorrelations. Conclusion: Hot flash and CIPN studies are more likely to find true effects if the analysis method uses data at all of the time points and adjusts for baseline. Collecting data at more time points and reducing the missing data rates also increase study power.