Optimizing Lung Condition Categorization through a Deep Learning Approach to Chest X-ray Image Analysis

Background: Evaluating chest X-rays is a complex and high-demand task due to the intrinsic challenges associated with diagnosing a wide range of pulmonary conditions. Therefore, advanced methodologies are required to categorize multiple conditions from chest X-ray images accurately. Methods: This study introduces an optimized deep learning approach designed for the multi-label categorization of chest X-ray images, covering a broad spectrum of conditions, including lung opacity, normative pulmonary states, COVID-19, bacterial pneumonia, viral pneumonia, and tuberculosis. An optimized deep learning model based on the modified VGG16 architecture with SE blocks was developed and applied to a large dataset of chest X-ray images. The model was evaluated against state-of-the-art techniques using metrics such as accuracy, F1-score, precision, recall, and area under the curve (AUC). Results: The modified VGG16-SE model demonstrated superior performance across all evaluated metrics. The model achieved an accuracy of 98.49%, an F1-score of 98.23%, a precision of 98.41%, a recall of 98.07% and an AUC of 98.86%. Conclusion: This study provides an effective deep learning approach for categorizing chest X-rays. The model’s high performance across various lung conditions suggests its potential for integration into clinical workflows, enhancing the accuracy and speed of pulmonary disease diagnosis.