Image reporting method and system

• US 20050147284A1
• Filed: 11/12/2004
• Published: 07/07/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Wake Forest University Health Sciences
• Original Assignee: Wake Forest University Health Sciences
• Inventors: Ge, Yaorong, Ahn, David K., Stelts, David R., Vining, David J.
• Granted Patent: US 7,693,317 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 382/128
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/4393 Multimedia presentations, e.g. slide shows, multimedia albums
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/5838 using colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/04 Billing or invoicing
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0012 Biomedical image inspection
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 2020/10944 Real-time recording or reproducing, e.g. for ensuring seamless playback of AV data
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 15/00 ICT specially adapted for medical reports, e.g. generation or transmission thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/40 for processing medical images, e.g. editing
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 80/00 ICT specially adapted for facilitating communication between medical practitioners or patients, e.g. for collaborative diagnosis, therapy or health monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 128/922 including image analysis
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99948 Application of database or data structure, e.g. distributed, multimedia, or image

Abstract

A method and system are provided to report the findings of an expert'"'"'s analysis of image data. The method and system are based on a reporting system that forms the basis of an image management system that can efficiently and systematically generate image reports, facilitate data entry into searchable databases for data mining, and expedite billing and collections for the expert'"'"'s services. The expert identifies a significant finding on an image and attaches a location:description code to the location of that finding in order to create a significant finding and an entry into a database. Further descriptions of that finding, such as dimensional measurements, audio descriptions, 3D rendered snapshots, etc., may be automatically appended to the finding as secondary attributes of the finding within the database. At the end of the expert'"'"'s evaluation of the image(s), the system sorts the findings in the database and presents the findings by prioritized categories. The expert edits and approves a multimedia report, which may be delivered to an Internet server for immediate access, archived in the database, sent by automated voice, fax or e-mail to an end-user, or any combination thereof.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method for analysis of an image comprising:

presenting an image of at least a selected portion of anatomy to a user for review;

associating a position descriptor with a selected feature of the anatomy, the position descriptor representing image coordinates;

presenting to the user a list of user-selectable items related to the image type;

selecting at least one item from the list, the item describing a characteristic of the feature; and

creating an image finding of the feature comprising the position descriptor and the at least one selected item.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein the presenting an image comprises presenting the image in a viewer and comprises associating a status of the viewer with the feature, the status comprising at least one of an orientation, a magnification, and a shading of the image.

3. A method according to claim 2, wherein the orientation comprises at least one of a translation state and a rotation state.

4. A method according to claim 2, wherein the magnification comprises a degree of image zoom.

5. A method according to claim 2, wherein the shading comprises at least one of a gray scale setting and opacity setting.

6. A method according to claim 2 wherein the image finding comprises the viewer status.

7. A method according to claim 1, comprising displaying a selected portion of the image and selecting of the displayed portion of the image to recall the associated diagnostic finding.

8. A method according to claim 1, wherein the presenting the list comprises creating the list to contain items that are consistent with the selected portion of anatomy.

9. A method according to claim 1 wherein the at least one list item comprises a location-code which describes the location of the selected feature relative to an anatomical structure depicted in the image.

10. A method according to claim 9 wherein the location-code represents an anatomical location.

11. A method according to claim 9 wherein the location-code is selected from a predefined lexicon of location-codes.

12. A method according to claim 9 wherein the at least one list item comprises a description-code which describes at least one property of the feature.

13. A method according to claim 12 wherein the description-code is selected from a predefined lexicon of description-codes.

14. A method according to claim 12 wherein the property comprises a pathology of the feature.

15. A method according to claim 1 wherein the image content information comprises one or more of a CPT code and a ICD code.

16. A method according to claim 1 comprising associating at least one of a dimensional measurement, mean voxel value, standard deviation of voxel values, an audio description, a two-dimensional image, a three-dimensional rendered image, a video description, and a user-defined illustration with the finding.

17. A method according to claim 1 comprising assigning a priority to the image finding to denote the importance of the image finding.

18. A method according to claim 1 comprising assigning a recommendation to the image finding to denote a recommended action to be taken with respect to the image finding.

19. A method according to claim 1 comprising creating at least one thumbnail image of the feature and associating the thumbnail image with the image finding.

20. A method according to claim 1 comprising displaying the image in at least one of a two-dimensional viewer and a three-dimensional viewer.

21. A method according to claim 20 wherein the image is formed by at least one of volume rendering, surface rendering, and rendering about a point.

22. A method according to claim 1 wherein the image comprises a digital image.

23. A method according to claim 1 wherein the image is part of a series of two-dimensional images associated with a three-dimensional body.

24. A method according to claim 1 comprising identifying features in the image using computer analysis of the image to provide computer identified features.

25. A method according to claim 24 comprising correlating the computer identified features with the selected feature.

26. A method according to claim 24 wherein the computer analysis comprises computer assisted polyp detection.

27. A method according to claim 24 wherein the computer analysis comprises a transbronchial needle aspiration targeting scheme.

28. A method according to claim 1 comprising creating a plurality of image findings.

29. A method according to claim 28 comprising linking selected findings of the plurality of image findings to create a cumulative finding encompassing the plurality of image findings.

30. A method according to claim 28 comprising linking related findings to associate the related findings to render the associated findings retrievable as a unit.

31. A method according to claim 28 comprising assigning a priority to at least one of the image findings and sorting the image findings according to priority.

32. A method according to claim 28 comprising assigning a location-code to at least one of the image findings and sorting the image findings according to location-code.

33. A method according to claim 28 comprising assigning a description-code to at least one of the image findings and sorting the image findings according to the description-code.

34. A method according to claim 1 comprising

retrieving at least one prior finding from a previous analysis of an image and

linking the retrieved image finding to the image finding of the feature, whereby a set of findings is created describing a chronology of the image finding of the feature.

35. A method according to claim 1 comprising generating a report based on the image finding.

36. A method according to claim 35 wherein the report contains at least one of the image finding, a thumbnail image of an image finding, and a chronology of an image finding.

37. A method according to claim 1 comprising recording a cine clip showing a time varying characteristic of the feature.

38. A computer implemented method for analysis of an image comprising:

presenting an image of at least a selected portion of anatomy in an image viewer to a user for review;

associating a position descriptor with the location of a selected feature of the anatomy, the position descriptor comprising image coordinates of the selected feature;

associating a status of the viewer with the feature, the status comprising viewer information regarding how the image is displayed;

associating a location-code with the feature, the location-code selected from a list presented to the user and describing the location of the feature relative to structure depicted in the image;

associating a description-code with the feature to describe a characteristic of the feature, the description-code selected from a list presented to the user; and

creating an image finding of the feature comprising the position descriptor, the location-code, the viewer status, and the description-code.

39. A method according to claim 38 wherein the location-code represents an anatomical location.

40. A method according to claim 38 wherein the viewer information comprises at least one of an orientation, a magnification, and a shading of the image.

41. A method according to claim 38 wherein the list of location-codes is compiled from a predefined lexicon of location-codes.

42. A method according to claim 38 wherein the characteristic describes at least one physical property of the feature.

43. A method according to claim 38 wherein the list of description-codes is compiled from a predefined lexicon of description-codes.

44. A method according to claim 38 comprising associating a content-code with the image, the content-code denoting that at least one specific object is depicted within the image, and wherein the description-code list is assembled to contain description-codes that are consistent with the content-code.

45. A method according to claim 38 comprising associating a content-code with the image, the content-code denoting that at least one specific object is depicted within the image and wherein the location-code list is assembled to contain location-codes that are consistent with the content-code.

46. A method according to claim 38 wherein the characteristic comprises a pathology of the feature.

47. A method according to claim 38 comprising associating at least one of a dimensional measurement, mean voxel value, standard deviation of voxel values, an audio description, a two-dimensional image, a three-dimensional rendered image, a video description, and a user-defined illustration with the finding.

48. A method according to claim 38 comprising creating at least one thumbnail image of the feature and associating the thumbnail image with the image finding.

49. A method according to claim 38 wherein displaying the image comprises display in at least one of a two-dimensional viewer and a three-dimensional viewer.

50. A method according to claim 38 wherein the image is formed by at least one of volume rendering, surface rendering, and rendering about a point.

51. A method according to claim 38 comprising displaying multiple images simultaneously.

52. A method according to claim 38 wherein the image comprises a digital image.

53. A method according to claim 38 wherein the image comprises a series of two-dimensional images associated with a three-dimensional body.

54. A method according to claim 38 comprising identifying features in the image using computer analysis of the image to provide computer identified features.

55. A method according to claim 54 comprising correlating the computer identified features with the selected feature.

56. A method according to claim 38 comprising creating a plurality of image findings.

57. A method according to claim 56 comprising generating a report based on the image findings.

58. A method according to claim 57 wherein generating the report comprises incorporating a cumulative finding by linking selected findings of the plurality of image findings to create the cumulative finding encompassing the plurality of image findings.

59. A method according to claim 57 wherein generating the report comprises incorporating a primary finding by linking related findings to associate the related findings to create the primary finding.

60. A method according to claim 57 wherein generating the report comprises assigning a priority to at least one of the image findings and sorting image findings according to priority.

61. A method according to claim 57 wherein generating the report comprises sorting image findings according to at least one of the location-code and the description-code.

62. A method according to claim 57 wherein generating the report comprises incorporating a chronology of an image finding by

retrieving at least one previous finding associated with the feature from a previous analysis and

linking the retrieved image finding to the image finding of the feature whereby the chronology of the image finding of the feature is created.

63. A method according to claim 57 wherein generating the report comprises computing a selected statistical measure of the report generation process.

64. A method according to claim 63 wherein the statistical measure comprises at least one of total review time, time per finding, number of findings, and diagnostic accuracy.

65. A method according to claim 57 comprising generating billing information to create a bill for the report.

66. A method according to claim 38, wherein the orientation comprises at least one of a translation state and a rotation state.

67. A method according to claim 38, wherein the magnification comprises a degree of image zoom.

68. A method according to claim 38, wherein the shading comprises at least one of a gray scale setting and opacity setting.

69. A system for analyzing an image of at least a selected portion of anatomy, comprising:

a position annotator for associating image coordinates with a selected feature of the image;

a list compiler for compiling a list of user-selectable items related to image content information describing the image type and for presenting the list to the user; and

an image finding generator for creating an image finding of the feature comprising the image coordinates of the image feature and at least one item selected by the user from the list.

70. A system according to claim 69, comprising a viewer for presenting the image to the user and comprising a viewer status recorder for associating a status of the viewer with the feature, the status comprising at least one of an orientation, a magnification, and a shading of the image.

71. A system according to claim 70, wherein the orientation comprises at least one of a translation state and a rotation state.

72. A system according to claim 70, wherein the magnification comprises a degree of image zoom.

73. A system according to claim 70, wherein the shading comprises at least one of a gray scale setting and opacity setting.

74. A system according to claim 69, wherein the list items comprise a location-code which describes the location of the feature relative to an object depicted in the image.

75. A system according to claim 74, wherein the location-code represents an anatomical location.

76. A system according to claim 74, wherein the location-code is selected from a predefined lexicon of location-codes.

77. A system according to claim 74, comprising a finding sorter for sorting a plurality of image findings according to location-code.

78. A system according to claim 69, wherein the list of items comprise a description-code which describes at least one property of the feature.

79. A system according to claim 78, comprising a finding sorter for sorting a plurality of image findings according to description-code.

80. A system according to claim 78, wherein the description-code is selected from a predefined lexicon of description-codes.

81. A system according to claim 78, wherein the property comprises a pathology of the feature.

82. A system according to claim 69, wherein the image content information comprises one or more of a CPT code and a ICD code.

83. A system according to claim 69, comprising a finding annotator for associating at least one of a dimensional measurement, mean voxel value, standard deviation of voxel values, an audio description, a two-dimensional image, a three-dimensional rendered image, a video description, and a user-defined illustration with the finding.

84. A system according to claim 69, comprising a voice recognition unit for entering the selected item.

85. A system according to claim 69, wherein the finding generator is configured to associate a priority with the image finding to denote the importance of the image finding.

86. A system according to claim 85, wherein the finding generator is configured to sort the image findings according to priority.

87. A system according to claim 69, wherein the finding generator is configured to associate a recommendation with the image finding to denote a recommended action to be taken with respect to the image finding.

88. A system according to claim 69, comprising a thumbnail generator for creating at least one thumbnail image of the feature and associating the thumbnail image with the image finding.

89. A system according to claim 69, comprising at least one of a two-dimensional viewer and a three-dimensional viewer.

90. A system according to claim 69, comprising a renderer for generating the image by at least one of volume rendering, surface rendering, and rendering about a point.

91. A system according to claim 69, comprising an image analyzer for identifying features in the image using computer analysis of the image to provide computer identified features.

92. A system according to claim 91, wherein the image analyzer is configured to correlate the computer identified features with the selected feature.

93. A system according to claim 87, wherein the image analyzer is configured to perform computer assisted polyp detection.

94. A system according to claim 87, wherein the image analyzer is configured to perform a transbronchial needle aspiration targeting scheme.

95. A system according to claim 69, comprising a finding compositor for linking selected findings of a plurality of image findings to create a cumulative finding comprising the plurality of image findings.

96. A system according to claim 69, comprising a file loader for retrieving at least one prior finding from a previous analysis of an image and for linking the retrieved image finding to the image finding of the feature, whereby a set of findings is created describing a chronology of the image finding of the feature.

97. A system according to claim 69, comprising a report generator for generating a report based on the image finding.

98. A system according to claim 97, wherein the report contains at least one of the image finding, a thumbnail image of the image finding, and a chronology of the image finding.

99. A system according to claim 69, wherein the list of user-selectable items is at least a subset of a comprehensive list of user selectable items.

100. A system according to claim 69, comprising a communication interface for communication with at least one of the Internet, an e-mail system, a fax, a telephone, a wireless communications system, a pager, a cell phone, a hospital information system, a radiology information system, and a picture archiving and communication system.

101. A system for analyzing an image, comprising:

a viewer for displaying of at least a selected portion of anatomy to a user for review;

a viewer status recorder for associating a status of the viewer with the feature, the status comprising viewer information regarding how the image is displayed;

a location-code list compiler for compiling a list of user-selectable location-codes describing the location of the feature relative to the object;

a description-code list compiler for compiling a list of user-selectable description-codes describing a characteristic of the feature; and

an image finding generator for creating an image finding of the feature comprising the image coordinates of the image feature, the viewer status, at least one location-code selected by the user from the location-code list, and at least one description-code selected by the user from the description-code list.

102. A system according to claim 101, wherein the viewer information comprises at least one of an orientation, a magnification, and a shading of the image.

103. A system according to claim 101, wherein the list of location-codes is compiled from a predefined lexicon of location-codes.

104. A system according to claim 101, wherein at least one of the location-code list and the description-code list is at least a subset of a comprehensive list of user selectable items.

105. A system according to claim 101, comprising a content-code retriever for retrieving a content-code, denoting what the image depicts, and for retrieving a reason-code, denoting a reason for creating the image.

106. A system according to claim 101 wherein the characteristic describes at least one physical property of the feature.

107. A system according to claim 101, wherein the characteristic comprises a pathology of the feature.

108. A system according to claim 101, wherein the list of description-codes is compiled from a predefined lexicon of description-codes.

109. A system according to claim 101, comprising a content-code retriever for retrieving a content-code and associating the content-code with the image, the content-code denoting that at least one specific object is depicted within the image, and wherein the location-code list is assembled to contain location-codes that are consistent with the content-code.

110. A system according to claim 101, comprising a content-code retriever for retrieving a content-code and associating the content-code with the image, the content-code denoting that at least one specific object is depicted within the image, and wherein the description-code list is assembled to contain description-codes that are consistent with the content-code.

111. A system according to claim 101, comprising a finding annotator for associating at least one of a dimensional measurement, mean voxel value, standard deviation of voxel values, an audio description, a two-dimensional image, a three-dimensional rendered image, a video description, and a user-defined illustration with the finding.

112. A system according to claim 101, comprising a thumbnail generator for creating at least one thumbnail image of the feature and associating the thumbnail image with the image finding.

113. A system according to claim 101, wherein the viewer comprises at least one of a two-dimensional viewer and a three-dimensional viewer.

114. A system according to claim 113, comprising a rendering means for rendering the image by at least one of volume rendering, surface rendering, and rendering about a point.

115. A system according to claim 101, comprising an image analyzer for identifying features in the image using computer analysis of the image to provide computer identified features.

116. A system according to claim 115, wherein the image analyzer is configured to correlate the computer identified features with the selected feature.

117. A system according to claim 101, comprising a report generator for generating a report based on the image finding.

118. A system according to claim 117, comprising a finding linking means for linking selected findings of a plurality of image findings to create a cumulative finding comprising the plurality of image findings.

119. A system according to claim 117, wherein the report generator is configured to assign a priority to at least one of a plurality of image findings and to sort the image findings according to priority.

120. A system according to claim 117, wherein the report generator is configured to sort image findings according to at least one of the location-code and the description-code.

121. A system according to claim 117, comprising a file loader for retrieving at least one prior finding from a previous analysis of an image and for linking the retrieved image finding to the image finding of the feature, whereby a set of findings is created describing a chronology of the image finding of the feature.

122. A system according to claim 117, wherein the report generator is configured to compute a selected statistical measure of the report generation process.

123. A system according to claim 122, wherein the statistical measure comprises at least one of total review time, time per finding, number of findings, and diagnostic accuracy.

124. A system according to claim 101, comprising a bill generator for creating a bill based on the diagnostic finding.

125. A system according to claim 101, wherein the finding generator is configured to associate a recommendation with the image finding to denote a recommended action to be taken with respect to the image finding.

126. A system according to claim 101, wherein the orientation comprises at least one of a translation state and a rotation state.

127. A system according to claim 101, wherein the magnification comprises a degree of image zoom.

128. A system according to claim 101, wherein the shading comprises at least one of a gray scale setting and opacity setting.