ULTRASOUND SYSTEM FOR RELIABLE 3D ASSESSMENT OF RIGHT VENTRICLE OF THE HEART AND METHOD OF DOING THE SAME

• US 20090156933A1
• Filed: 09/07/2006
• Published: 06/18/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 09/07/2005
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Soler, Pau, Gerard, Olivier, Allain, Pascal
• Application Number:
  US12/066,094
• Publication Number:
  US 20090156933A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 600/443
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/4245 involving determining the position of the probe, e.g. with respect to an external reference frame or to the patient
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10136 3D ultrasound image
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30048 Heart; Cardiac
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/38 Registration of image sequences

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method and a system for right ventricular 3D quantification by registering and merging or fusing together several (2-5) 3D acquisitions for an extended field of view in 3D to have the right ventricle in one 3D data set.

Claims

1. An ultrasound method for reliable 3D assessment of a right ventricle of a patient'"'"'s heart, the steps comprising;

acquiring a 3D ultrasound volume of a patient'"'"'s heart;

moving a 2D matrix ultrasonic probe to a slightly different area of said patient'"'"'s heart and repeating step (a) until step is done n times where 2≦

n≦

5 before going on to step (c);

initialization of registration of n images acquired from steps (a) and (b) wherein anatomical points are input to all datasets;

computing a best rigid transformation between n images acquired from steps (a) and (b) by using said anatomical points in each of said n images that are in correspondence;

fusing said n images onto one image by using smart rule to select gray level intensity for Voxel; and

applying border detection to 3D image obtained by the fusing step (e) so that a new 3D ultrasound dataset is obtained that is longer (wider) than could be acquired in one acquisition and with better border delineation because of smart imaging process of a right ventricle of said patient'"'"'s heart.

2. The method according to claim 1 where during said initialization of registration step (c) a user inputs same anatomical points on each dataset for 3D ultrasound image acquired for each slightly different area of a patient'"'"'s heart that is probed.

3. The method according to claim 1 wherein during said initialization of registration step (c) a segmentation method with a Q-Lab Philips Solution is used so a user has to enter five anatomical points.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein said anatomical points in correspondence in said computing step (d) are a discrete set.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein said anatomical points in correspondence in computing step (d) are in a mesh.

6. An ultrasound system for reliable 3D assessment of a right ventricle of a patient'"'"'s heart, comprising;

ultrasonic imaging equipment for acquiring a 3D ultrasound volume of a patient'"'"'s heart;

a 2D matrix ultrasonic probe adapted to be moved to a slightly different area of said patient'"'"'s heart and repeating imaging with said ultrasound equipment until it is done n times where 2≦

n≦

5;

registration controls on said ultrasound equipment for initializing registration of said n images acquired wherein anatomical points are input to all datasets by said controls;

said ultrasound equipment including computing apparatus for computing a best rigid transformation between said n images acquired by using said anatomical points in each of said n images that are in correspondence;

controls on said ultrasound equipment for fusing said n images onto one image by using smart rule algorithm in said ultrasound equipment to select gray level intensity for voxel; and

said ultrasound equipment including border detection controls for applying border detection to 3D image obtained by said fusing so that a new 3D ultrasound dataset is obtained that is longer (wider) than could be acquired in one acquisition and with better border delineation because of smart imaging process of a right ventricle of said patient'"'"'s heart.

7. The system according to claim 6 where during said initialization of registration a user inputs same anatomical points on each dataset for 3D ultrasound image acquired for each slightly different area of a patient'"'"'s heart that is probed.

8. The system according to claim 6 wherein during said initialization of registration step (c) a segmentation method with a Q-Lab Philips Solution is used so a user has to enter five anatomical points.

9. The system according to claim 6 wherein said anatomical points in correspondence in said computing are a discrete set.

10. The system according to claim 6 wherein said anatomical points in correspondence in computing are in a mesh.