Systems and graphical user interface for analyzing body images

• US 20030016850A1
• Filed: 07/17/2001
• Published: 01/23/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 07/17/2001
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Merative US LP
• Original Assignee: Cedara Software Ltd. (International Business Machines Corporation)
• Inventors: Kaufman, Leon, Powers, Shelley, Goldhaber, David, Mineyev, Mikhail
• Granted Patent: US 7,130,457 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/128
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 15/00 ICT specially adapted for medical reports, e.g. generation or transmission thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation

Abstract

Systems and graphical user interfaces for analyzing body images. In an exemplary embodiment, the present invention provides a graphical user interface having a display coupled to a microprocessing device and a memory device. The graphical user interface has an electronic representation of a first body image and a second body image and an electronic map representing the position of nodules on the first body image and second body image.

Claims

1. A graphical user interface device for comparing body images, the interface comprising:

a display coupled to a microprocessing device and a memory device;

an electronic representation of a first body image taken at t₁ along a first plane and a second body image taken at t₂ along the first plane, wherein the electronic representations are stored in the memory device and displayed on the display; and

an electronic representation of at least one composite image of the first body image and the second body image.

2. The graphical user interface of claim 1 further comprising an electronic map representing the position of at least one nodule in the first body image and the second body image, wherein the electronic map is stored in the memory device and displayed on the display.

3. The graphical user interface of claim 2 wherein the electronic map comprises at least one marker.

4. The graphical user interface of claim 3 wherein the marker is a number, a symbol, or a color.

5. The graphical user interface of claim 2 wherein the electronic map displays the nodules on the first body image in a first color and the electronic map displays the nodules on the second body image in a second color, wherein the composite image displays a change in size of the nodules in a third color.

6. The graphical user interface of claim 1 wherein the composite image comprises an electronic representation of a sum of the first image and the second image.

7. The graphical user interface of claim 1 wherein the composite image comprises an electronic representation of a subtraction of the first image and the second image.

8. The graphical user interface of claim 1 further comprising an electronic three dimensional representation of the first or second image.

9. The graphical user interface of claim 1 further comprising a toolbar for manipulating at least one of the first image and second image.

10. The graphical user interface of claim 1 further comprising a panel for displaying statistics of at least one nodule in the first and second image.

11. The graphical user interface of claim 10 wherein the statistics comprise nodule number, anatomic position, size, volume, surface area, roundness, density and standard deviation, and major and minor axes of the nodule.

12. The graphical user interface of claim 10 wherein the panel comprises a first portion for displaying statistics of nodules in the first image and a second portion for displaying statistics of the corresponding nodules in the second image.

13. The graphical user interface of claim 12 further comprising a third portion for displaying statistics of new nodules in the second image.

15. The graphical user interface of claim 10 wherein the panel further comprises means for dissociating nodules in the first body image from nodules in the second body image.

16. The graphical user interface of claim 10 wherein the panel further comprises means for associating nodules in the first body image with nodules in the second body image.

17. The graphical user interface of claim 1 comprising a report input button for generating a lung report.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein the processor is further programmed to produce a report.

20. The system of claim 19 wherein the processor is further programmed to electronically deliver the report over a communication network to a third party.

21. The system of claim 19 wherein the processor is further programmed to save the report on a computer readable medium.

22. The system of claim 18 further comprising a printer to print the report.

23. The system of claim 18 wherein the lesions comprise lung nodules.

24. The system of claim 18 wherein the first dataset is a baseline image scan taken at t₁ and the second dataset is a follow-up image scan taken at t₂.

25. The system of claim 18 wherein the processor is programmed to register the first image and second image prior to comparing the lesion.

26. The system of claim 18 further comprising an imaging device for generating at least one of the first dataset and second dataset.

27. The system of claim 18 wherein the processor is programmed to calculate the change in size, volume, surface area, roundness, density and standard deviation, major and minor axes of the lesion.

28. The system of claim 18 wherein the processor displays differences of the lesion by displaying a third image which is the first image superimposed with the second image.

29. The system of claim 28 wherein the processor is further programmed to display the lesion in the first image a first color and display the lesion in the second image a second color.

30. The system of claim 29 wherein the differences of the lesion is displayed in a third color.

18. A system for interpreting thoracic images, the system comprising:

a storage device for storing a first dataset and a second dataset of images;

a user interface; and

a processor programmed to;

access the storage device to display an image from the first dataset and an image from the second dataset on the user interface;

compare a lesion from the image from the first dataset and the lesion from the image from the second dataset; and

display differences of the lesion in the image from the first dataset and the lesion in the image from the second dataset.

31. A system for displaying body images on a user output device, the system comprising:

means for displaying a first image in a first image window;

means for displaying a second image in a second image window; and

means for displaying a third image in a third window, wherein the third image is one of a sum and a subtraction of the first and second image.

32. The system of claim 31 further comprising toolbar means for displaying user actuatable icons.

33. The system of claim 31 further comprising means for creating a panel for displaying image information of the first image.

35. The method of claim 34 wherein the marked map comprises numbered markers over the lesions.

36. The method of claim 34 wherein displaying the marked map comprises displaying the lesions in a different color than the surrounding tissue.

37. The method of claim 34 further comprising displaying a panel of statistics of the displayed lesions.

38. The method of claim 34 further comprising displaying a composite image of the first and second image.

34. A method in a computer system for displaying two body images for comparison, the method comprising:

displaying a first and second image; and

displaying a marked map of lesions in the first and second image.