Abstract
This paper proposes a new enhanced model architecture to perform classification of lumbar spine degeneration with DICOM images while using a hybrid approach, integrating EfficientNet and VGG19 together with custom-designed components. The proposed model is differentiated from traditional transfer learning methods as it incorporates a Pseudo-Newton Boosting layer along with a Sparsity-Induced Feature Reduction Layer that forms a multi-tiered framework, further improving feature selection and representation. The Pseudo-Newton Boosting layer makes smart variations of feature weights, with more detailed anatomical features, which are mostly left out in a transfer learning setup. In addition, the Sparsity-Induced Layer removes redundancy for learned features, producing lean yet robust representations for pathology in the lumbar spine. This architecture is novel as it overcomes the constraints in the traditional transfer learning approach, especially in the high-dimensional context of medical images, and achieves a significant performance boost, reaching a precision of 0.9, recall of 0.861, F1 score of 0.88, loss of 0.18, and an accuracy of 88.1%, compared to the baseline model, EfficientNet. This work will present the architectures, preprocessing pipeline, and experimental results. The results contribute to the development of automated diagnostic tools for medical images.
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URL
https://arxiv.org/abs/2511.13877
