A pilot study on neonatal ultrasound patterns unraveling associations with obstetric factors

Ultrasound technology has emerged as a valuable tool for diagnosing, evaluating, and monitoring various diseases across all age groups. Its non-irradiating, cost-effective, and non-invasive nature makes it particularly interesting for the fragile neonatal population. In this population, one emerging application is thoracic imaging, primarily utilized for monitoring respiratory diseases. However, there is currently a lack of data on normal healthy reference values in this specific application. In this pilot study, we examined ultrasound patterns, specifically focusing on the detection of B-Lines, and their associations with obstetric factors in a healthy population of neonatal patients. Our objective was to establish a baseline in this study and lay the groundwork for developing pipelines and algorithms to integrate into ultrasound equipment. Through statistical analysis we obtained promising results in assessing the normal ranges of variability observed in ultrasound research at this early stage in neonatal cases. This research presents valuable insights that could contribute to the advancement of ultrasound-based neonatal healthcare and the development of innovative wearable technology solutions.