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This article describes a new approach for quantitative evaluation of respiration in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). Video sequences of thorax movements are recorded by two depth cameras to cover the 3-D surface of the torso and its lateral sides. The breathing activity implies a frame-by-frame surface deformation, which can be described by the volume variation of reconstructed surfaces between the consecutive video frames. A quantitative evaluation of the breathing pattern is then performed through a subtraction technique, thereby detecting the volume variation between the subsequent frames. A high-fidelity simulation was performed in a realistic environment designed for critically ill children. The simulation was then followed by a real-world evaluation, involving two newborn babies (one female and one male) who required ventilator support. The breathing signal patterns resulting from our approach were compared to those measured by mechanical ventilation in terms of their waveforms, evaluating the most significant dynamic parameters: tidal volume, respiratory rate, and minute ventilation. Our experimental study showed a significant agreement between the proposed 3-D imaging system and the gold standard method in estimating respiratory waveforms and parameters. This article presents the following innovations. First, we suggest a 3-D imaging system specifically designed for PICUs based on a contactless design. Second, we propose an efficient positioning mechanism for the cameras, offering a very high spatial coverage of the thoracoabdominal zone and considering the PICU constraints. Finally, we propose an objective vision-based method to quantitatively measure respiration for spontaneous breathing patients in PICUs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Assessment of respiratory function allows early detection of potential disorders in the respiratory system and provides useful information for medical management. There is a wide range of applications for breathing assessment, from measurement systems in a clinical environment to applications involving athletes. Many studies on pulmonary function testing systems and breath monitoring have been conducted over the past few decades, and their results have the potential to broadly impact clinical practice. However, most of these works require physical contact with the patient to produce accurate and reliable measures of the respiratory function. There is still a significant shortcoming of non-contact measuring systems in their ability to fit into the clinical environment. The purpose of this paper is to provide a review of the current advances and systems in respiratory function assessment, particularly camera-based systems. A classification of the applicable research works is presented according to their techniques and recorded/quantified respiration parameters. In addition, the current solutions are discussed with regards to their direct applicability in different settings, such as clinical or home settings, highlighting their specific strengths and limitations in the different environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]