Grant Murewanhema PhD upgrading seminar - 17/3/26 - 15:00 GMT

Grant Murewanhema will be presenting at his upgrading seminar on Tuesday the 17th of March, at 15:00 GMT, on 'Integrating Artificial Intelligence into Point-of-Care Obstetric Ultrasonography for Fetal Growth Monitoring and Diagnosis of Fetal Growth Restriction in Zimbabwe'

Zoom details :

Zoom link

Meeting ID: 891 8929 8146

Password: 044311 

Adverse birth outcomes, including small vulnerable newborns, stillbirths and neonatal deaths remain significant reproductive health challenges globally, more so in low-to-middle income countries (LMICs). Zimbabwe faces significant challenges in moving towards attaining the sustainable development goal 3.2 target of ending preventable deaths of newborns and children under five by 2030. Lack of adequate foetal growth monitoring and late or no diagnosis of foetal growth restriction are key contributors to adverse birth outcomes.

The introduction of artificial intelligence (AI) into obstetric sonography has the potential to reduce adverse birth outcomes by improving pregnancy monitoring to inform timing of interventions. In the Foetal Age Machine Learning Initiative, an AI-integrated point-of-care (AI-POCUS) device using blind sweeps performed by novice providers was validated for gestational age estimation.

In this PhD, I will evaluate the performance and acceptability of this AI-POCUS for foetal growth monitoring and diagnosis of foetal growth restriction in Zimbabwe.

Firstly, I will perform a systematic review to assess the current status of AI use in obstetric ultrasonography for foetal growth monitoring and diagnosis of foetal growth restriction. Secondly, I will conduct a prospective cohort study to evaluate the performance of AI-POCUS compared to conventional ultrasound scan for foetal growth monitoring and diagnosis of foetal growth restriction.

Lastly, I will conduct a qualitative study using Sekhon’s Framework of Acceptability to evaluate prospectively the acceptability of AI-POCUS  for foetal growth monitoring among stakeholders in reproductive health in Zimbabwe.