Systemic Inflammatory Response Indication Observer (SIRIO)

• Applicants: Professor Dr.-Ing. Steffen Leonhardt; Professor Dr. Thorsten Orlikowsky
• Subject Area: Biomedical Systems Technology ; Medical Physics, Biomedical Technology
• Term: from 2017 to 2022
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 389432072

The aim of the SIRIO project (Systemic Inflammatory Response Indication Observer) is the development of a hybrid camera monitoring system for an early detection of sepsis in premature infants. SIRIO fuses the camera-based vitalparamater monitoring systems Photoplethysmography Imaging and Infrared Imaging into a camera-based Hybrid Imaging technology for the vital state detection in neonates. Both methods are novel approaches to obtain vital parameters contactless. Hence, they can operate in addition to the existing infrastructure. A further advantage is that there is no direct contact with the patient so that the premature infant skin is not harmed. In general, the patient is not subjected to any additional stress and there is no risk of infection (caused by the measurement technique). This hybrid measuring technique allows the contactless detection of vital signs, including: 1) cutaneous blood circulation, 2) heart and respiratory rate as well as their variability, 3) the skin perfusion (central and peripheral), 4) skin coloring, and 5) physical activity.From these measured parameters, first septic indications will be automatically recognized. These septic features will be fused into a scoring parameter. This scoring parameter will be derived from the Pediatric Early Warning Score (PEWS), which is already established in the clinical routine. In case of first septic signs, an alarm is triggered, so that the next manual steps can be initiated according to the standard treatment guidelines without time loss: confirmation of the diagnosis, e.g. by checking the capillarization time, determination of blood culture and subsequent therapy.The project envisages the implementation of the hybrid monitoring concept and the development of signal processing routines, which provide a real-time decision support system for the attending clinical staff - unobtrusively and additively to the existing infrastructure at the neonatology station.For this project, the local Ethics Committee authorized a clinical human study with 20 preterm infants. Based on preclinical tests, the feasibility of this system will be proved within this study.

• DFG Programme: Research Grants