High precision ECG digitization using artificial intelligence

Abstract

Background

Digitization of paper-based electrocardiograms (ECGs) enables long-term preservation, fast transmission, and advanced analysis. Traditional methods for digitizing ECGs face significant challenges, particularly in real-world scenarios with varying image quality. State-of-the-art solutions often require manual input and are limited by their dependence on high-quality scans and standardized layouts.

Methods

This study introduces a fully automated, deep learning-based approach for high precision ECG digitization. In the normalization phase, a standardized grid structure is detected, and image distortions are corrected. Next, the reconstruction phase uses deep learning techniques to extract and digitize the leads, followed by post-processing to refine the signal. This approach was evaluated using the publicly available PMcardio ECG Image Database (PM-ECG-ID), comprising 6000 ECG images reflecting diverse real-world scenarios and smartphone-based image acquisitions. Performance was assessed using Pearson's correlation coefficient (PCC), root mean squared error (RMSE), and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR).

Results

The ECG digitization solution demonstrated an average PCC consistently exceeding 0.91 across all leads, SNR above 12.5 dB and RMSE below 0.10 mV. The time to ECG digitization was consistently less than 7 s. The average failure rate was 6.62 % across leads, with most failures occurring under extreme conditions such as severe blurring or significant image degradation. The solution maintained robust performance even under challenging scenarios, such as low-resolution images, distorted grids, and overlapping signals.

Conclusion

Our deep learning-based approach for ECG digitization delivers high-precision signals, effectively addressing real-world challenges. This fully automated method enhances the accessibility and utility of ECG data by enabling convenient digitization via smartphones, unlocking advanced AI-driven analysis.