# A Two-Stage Multi-Modal MRI Framework for Lifespan Brain Age Prediction

Source: [A Two-Stage Multi-Modal MRI Framework for Lifespan Brain Age Prediction](<https://www.sota2.com/research/paper/69e704647d0172140ec7eb1d>)

Collection index: [llms.txt](<https://www.sota2.com/research/llms.txt>)

Data updated: 2026-04-22T05:21:28.943Z

Authors: Dingyi Zhang, Ruiying Liu, Yun Wang

Published: 2026-04-17T19:20:54.000Z

## Abstract

The accurate quantification of brain age from MRI has emerged as an important biomarker of brain health. However, existing approaches are often restricted to narrow age ranges and single-modality MRI data, limiting their capacity to capture the coordinated macro- and microstructural changes that unfold across the human lifespan. To address these limitations, we developed a multi-modal brain age framework to characterize the integrated evolution of brain morphology and white matter organization. Our model adopts a two-stage architecture, where modalities are processed independently and integrated via late fusion in both stages: first to classify each subject into one of six developmental stages, and then to estimate age within the predicted stage. This design enables a unified and lifespan-spanning assessment of brain maturity across diverse developmental periods.

## Recorded benchmark results

A research result applies to its stated dataset, split, metric and evaluation configuration. Compare like-for-like settings, preserve the metric's unit and direction, and distinguish paper-reported results from independent reproduction. The best result recorded here is not a claim of exhaustive, current global coverage.

- [Brain age estimation on Fetal In-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-fetal-in-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Fetal In-domain; MAE: 0.01.

- [Brain age estimation on Neonatal In-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-neonatal-in-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Neonatal In-domain; Mean Absolute Error (MAE): 0.02.

- [Brain age estimation on Infant In-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-infant-in-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Infant In-domain; MAE: 0.11.

- [Brain age estimation on Elderly In-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-elderly-in-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Elderly In-domain; MAE: 5.77.

- [Brain age estimation on Fetal Out-of-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-fetal-out-of-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Fetal Out-of-domain; MAE: 0.04.

- [Brain age estimation on Neonatal Out-of-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-neonatal-out-of-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Neonatal Out-of-domain; MAE: 0.08.

- [Brain age estimation on Infant Out-of-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-infant-out-of-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Infant Out-of-domain; MAE: 0.15.

- [Brain age estimation on Child Out-of-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-child-out-of-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Child Out-of-domain; MAE: 3.88.

- [Brain age estimation on Adult Out-of-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-adult-out-of-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Adult Out-of-domain; MAE: 12.73.

- [Brain age estimation on Elderly Out-of-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-elderly-out-of-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Elderly Out-of-domain; MAE: 6.14.

- [Brain age estimation on Child In-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-child-in-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Child In-domain; MAE: 1.17.

- [Brain age estimation on Adult In-domain](<https://www.sota2.com/research/sota/brain-age-estimation-on-adult-in-domain.md>): Brain Age Estimation; Adult In-domain; MAE: 3.97.

## Original sources and implementation

[Original paper](<https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.16655>)

[PDF](<https://arxiv.org/pdf/2604.16655.pdf>)