5G-Based Telerobotic Ultrasound System Improves Access to Breast Examination in Rural and Remote Areas: A Prospective and Two-Scenario Study

Abstract

Objective: Ultrasound (US) plays an important role in the diagnosis and management of breast diseases; however, effective breast US screening is lacking in rural and remote areas. To alleviate this issue, we prospectively evaluated the clinical availability of 5G-based telerobotic US technology for breast examinations in rural and remote areas. Methods: Between September 2020 and March 2021, 63 patients underwent conventional and telerobotic US examinations in a rural island (Scenario A), while 20 patients underwent telerobotic US examination in a mobile car located in a remote county (Scenario B) in May 2021. The safety, duration, US image quality, consistency, and acceptability of the 5G-based telerobotic US were assessed. Results: In Scenario A, the average duration of the telerobotic US procedure was longer than that of conventional US (10.3 ± 3.3 min vs. 7.6 ± 3.0 min, p = 0.017), but their average imaging scores were similar (4.86 vs. 4.90, p = 0.159). Two cases of gynecomastia, one of lactation mastitis, and one of postoperative breast effusion were diagnosed and 32 nodules were detected using the two US methods. There was good interobserver agreement between the US features and BI-RADS categories of the identical nodules (ICC = 0.795–1.000). In Scenario B, breast nodules were detected in 65% of the patients using telerobotic US. Its average duration was 10.1 ± 2.3 min, and the average imaging score was 4.85. Overall, 90.4% of the patients were willing to choose telerobotic US in the future, and tele-sonologists were satisfied with 85.5% of the examinations. Conclusion: The 5G-based telerobotic US system is feasible for providing effective breast examinations in rural and remote areas.

Effect of social influence, environmental awareness, and safety affordance on actual use of 5G technologies among Chinese students

“…Real-time data collection, analysis, and transmission are made possible by 5G technology, improving environmental monitoring systems, tracking wildlife, and natural resource management. Environmentally conscious people may appreciate the usefulness of 5G technology in advancing environmental conservation initiatives 6 .…”

“…The Chinese government has firmly committed to developing and implementing 5G technology nationwide. This commitment is reflected in China's aggressive deployment of 5G infrastructure, making it one of the largest and fastest-growing 5G markets globally 6 . The Chinese government has made substantial advancements in telecommunications and has several leading technology companies driving the development and deployment of 5G networks and devices 7 .…”

Clinical Application of Computer‐Aided Diagnosis System in Breast Ultrasound: A Prospective Multicenter Study

“…Several previous studies have validated the value of S-Detect in increasing the specificity, positive predictive value (PPV), and reducing unnecessary biopsies of breast lesions [2,[7][8][9]. The ultrasonic diagnostic level in university level III hospitals located in highly developed regions of China is higher than that in non-university hospitals in less-developed regions of China, where there is a shortage of breast imaging specialists [7,10]. So, we initiated this prospective multicenter study to evaluate the value of S-Detect to improve the ability of radiologists in diagnosing breast lesions in non-university hospitals in less-developed regions of China.…”