An interpretable radiomics-machine learning model for diagnosing invasive fungal infections in community-acquired pneumonia: multicenter study

Objectives To develop a high-resolution computed tomography (HRCT) radiomics-based interpretable machine learning model for diagnosing invasive fungal infection (IFI) in community-acquired pneumonia (CAP) patient. Methods A total of 570 CAP patients who underwent HRCT from July 2022 to August 2024 in Center 1 and Center 2 were recruited. A vb-net pneumonia automatic segmentation algorithm was employed. Three models, a radiomics model (HRCT-derived radiomics features), a clinical model (clinical variables), and a combined model (integrating both), were developed. The performance of these models was evaluated through receiver operating characteristic analysis with respect to the area under the curve (AUC). Clinical utility was evaluated by using decision curve analysis. The Shapley Additive Explanation tool was employed. Results 239 (mean age: 62.1 ± 19.3 years; 134 male), 101 (mean age: 57.5 ± 17.3 years; 44 male), and 230 (mean age: 68.4 ± 15.3 years; 153 male) patients were included in the training, internal validation, and external validation datasets. Based on linear discriminant analysis classifier, the AUCs of the clinical, radiomics, and combined models were 0.719, 0.724, and 0.808, respectively, in the internal validation dataset; and 0.707, 0.709, and 0.786, respectively, in the external validation dataset. The combined model yielded a superior net benefit relative to both the clinical and radiomics models alone. Age exerted the greatest influence on the predictions of the combined model, while the three most important radiomics features were all higher-order texture features. Conclusions A radiomics-based machine learning model can effectively diagnose IFI in CAP patients, demonstrating favorable interpretability. Clinical relevance statement: The radiomics-based interpretable model developed in this study has significant clinical relevance as it offers a non-invasive method for diagnosing invasive fungal infection in community-acquired pneumonia patients and holds promise as an early diagnostic tool.