From brain scans to classifiers: A systematic review of ML-based autism diagnostic frameworks - Summary - MDSpire

From brain scans to classifiers: A systematic review of ML-based autism diagnostic frameworks

  • By

  • Naveed Ur Rehman Ahmed

  • Ayesha Tajammul

  • Afzal Badshah

  • Muhammad Saad

  • Abdulrahman Ahmed Gharawi

  • Ammar Almutawa

  • Sakher Ghanem

  • Ali Daud

  • June 27, 2026

  • 0 min

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Objective:

To provide a focused overview of neuroimaging for Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) diagnosis, highlighting recent advancements in multimodal neuroimaging techniques.

Approach:
  • Neuroimaging Modalities: The review covers four primary neuroimaging modalities: functional MRI (fMRI), structural MRI (sMRI), Electroencephalography (EEG), and multimodal approaches.
  • Machine Learning Analysis: It includes an in-depth analysis of key diagnostic features used in machine learning and deep learning-based ASD classification.
  • Comparative Summary: A comparative summary of diagnostic performance, focusing on accuracy (Acc) and Area Under the Curve (AUC) values, is presented.
  • Dataset Overview: An organized overview of the most frequently used neuroimaging datasets for ASD diagnosis is provided.
  • Future Directions: The article identifies potential concerns and future directions to improve the robustness, generalizability, and clinical applicability of computational approaches.
Key Findings:
  • A comprehensive analysis of 107 key studies from 2015 to 2021 is included.
Interpretation:

The review highlights the importance of integrating machine learning with neuroimaging techniques to improve ASD diagnosis.

Limitations:
  • Many existing studies focus on individual neuroimaging modalities rather than multimodal approaches.
  • Previous reviews may be outdated or narrowly scoped.
Conclusion:

The review aims to fill gaps in the literature by providing a current perspective on ASD diagnosis using neuroimaging.

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