IKONOS: an intelligent tool to support diagnosis of COVID-19 by texture analysis of X-ray images

Abstract

PurposeIn late 2019, the SARS-CoV-2 virus spread worldwide. The virus has high rates of proliferation and causes severe respiratory symptoms, such as pneumonia. The standard diagnostic method for pneumonia is chest X-ray image. There are many advantages to using COVID-19 diagnostic X-rays: low cost, fast, and widely available.MethodsWe propose an intelligent system to support diagnosis by X-ray images. We tested Haralick and Zernike moments for feature extraction. Experiments with classic classifiers were done.ResultsSupport vector machines stood out, reaching an average accuracy of 89.78%, average sensitivity of 0.8979, and average precision and specificity of 0.8985 and 0.9963, respectively.ConclusionUsing features based on textures and shapes combined with classical classifiers, the developed system was able to differentiate COVID-19 from viral and bacterial pneumonia with low computational cost.