The prototype device for non-invasive diagnosis of arteriovenous fistula condition using machine learning methods

Pattern recognition and automatic decision support methods provide significant advantages in the area of health protection. The aim of this work is to develop a low-cost tool for monitoring arteriovenous fistula (AVF) with the use of phono-angiography method. This article presents a developed and diagnostic device that implements classification algorithms to identify 38 patients with end stage renal disease, chronically hemodialysed using an AVF, at risk of vascular access stenosis. We report on the design, fabrication, and preliminary testing of a prototype device for non-invasive diagnosis which is very important for hemodialysed patients. The system includes three sub-modules: AVF signal acquisition, information processing and classification and a unit for presenting results. This is a non-invasive and inexpensive procedure for evaluating the sound pattern of bruit produced by AVF. With a special kind of head which has a greater sensitivity than conventional stethoscope, a sound signal from fistula was recorded. The proces of signal acquisition was performed by a dedicated software, written specifically for the purpose of our study. From the obtained phono-angiogram, 23 features were isolated for vectors used in a decision-making algorithm, including 6 features based on the waveform of time domain, and 17 features based on the frequency spectrum. Final definition of the feature vector composition was obtained by using several selection methods: the feature-class correlation, forward search, Principal Component Analysis and Joined-Pairs method. The supervised machine learning technique was then applied to develop the best classification model.