Medical image processing device and medical image processing method

• US 8,295,566 B2
• Filed: 09/11/2008
• Issued: 10/23/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/16/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Olympus Corporation
• Original Assignee: Olympus Medical Systems Corporation (Olympus Corporation)
• Inventors: Nishimura, Hirokazu, Tanaka, Hideki, Nakamura, Kenji, Inoue, Ryoko, Sawa, Miho
• Primary Examiner(s): Cao, Phat X
• Application Number:
  US12/208,821
• Publication Number:
  US 20090074269A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,503 Days
• Field of Search: 382/128, 382/190
• US Class Current: 382/128
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 1/04 combined with photographic or television appliances
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10068 Endoscopic image
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30032 Colon polyp
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0012 Biomedical image inspection

Abstract

An image processing device includes; a lesion candidate region detecting section that detects a lesion candidate region based on at least one color signal in a medical image including a plurality of color signals; an incidental region detecting section that detects an incidental region that arises because of incidental attributes accompanying a lesion from the medical image; and a detection standard changing section that changes a detection standard when detecting a lesion from the lesion candidate region in accordance with a detection result of the incidental region.

Claims

1. A medical image processing device, comprising:

a three-dimensional surface shape generation section that generates a three-dimensional surface shape reflecting a surface shape of an observation target in a medical image based on a two-dimensional image obtained from at least one color signal in the medical image including a plurality of color signals;

a lesion candidate region detecting section that detects a lesion candidate region which comprises a region with an elevation change or a region with a depression change, utilizing information of the three-dimensional surface shape that is generated by the three-dimensional surface shape generation section;

an incidental region detecting section that detects an incidental region that arises because of incidental attributes accompanying a lesion from the medical image; and

a detection standard changing section that changes a detection standard when detecting a lesion from the lesion candidate region in accordance with a detection result of the incidental region;

wherein the detection standard changing section uses, as the detection standard, a first detection standard when the incidental region is not detected, and a second detection standard which is more relaxed than the first detection standard when the incidental region is detected.

2. The medical image processing device according to claim 1, wherein the incidental region detecting section detects a region with a color tone change that presents attributes of a color tone change such as reddening or discoloration as the incidental region.

3. The medical image processing device according to claim 1, wherein the incidental region detecting section detects a region with an abnormal finding that presents attributes of an abnormal finding of white spots or abnormal blood vessels as the incidental region.

4. The medical image processing device according to claim 2, wherein the detection standard changing section changes, as the detection standard, a threshold value of at least one of a shape index and a curvedness of a feature value that represents a curved shape in the information of the three-dimensional surface shape that is generated.

5. The medical image processing device according to claim 1, wherein the detection standard changing section changes, as the detection standard, a threshold value of a height from a reference surface or at least one of a shape index and a curvedness of a feature value that represents a curved shape in the information of the three-dimensional surface shape that is generated.

6. The medical image processing device according to claim 1, wherein in a case where the three-dimensional surface shape of the lesion candidate region detected by the lesion candidate region detecting section is a convex or concave shape, when the incidental region is detected by the incidental region detecting section, the detection standard changing section uses the second detection standard with a degree of the convex or concave shape more relaxed than that in the first detection standard which is used when the incidental region is not detected.

7. A medical image processing device, comprising:

a three-dimensional surface shape generation section that generates a three-dimensional surface shape reflecting a surface shape of an observation target in a medical image based on a two-dimensional image obtained from at least one color signal in the medical image including a plurality of color signals;

a lesion candidate region detecting section that detects a lesion candidate region which comprises a region with an elevation change or a region with a depression change, utilizing information of the three-dimensional surface shape that is generated by the three-dimensional surface shape generation section;

an incidental region detecting section that detects an incidental region that arises because of incidental attributes accompanying a lesion from the medical image; and

a lesion detecting section that performs lesion detection based on existence or non-existence of a region in which a lesion candidate region that is detected by the lesion candidate region detecting section and an incidental region that is detected by the incidental region detecting section correlate.

8. A medical image processing method, comprising:

a three-dimensional surface shape generation step that generates a three-dimensional surface shape reflecting a surface shape of an observation target in a medical image based on a two-dimensional image obtained from at least one color signal in the medical image including a plurality of color signals;

a lesion candidate region detection step that detects a lesion candidate region which comprises a region with an elevation change or a region with a depression change, utilizing information of the three-dimensional surface shape that is generated by the three-dimensional surface shape generation step;

an incidental region detection step that detects existence or non-existence of an incidental region that arises because of incidental attributes accompanying a lesion from the medical image; and

a detection standard changing step that changes a detection standard when detecting a lesion from the lesion candidate region according to a detection result regarding existence or non-existence of the incidental region;

wherein the detection standard changing step uses, as the detection standard, a first detection standard when the incidental region is not detected, and a second detection standard which is more relaxed than the first detection standard when the incidental region is detected.

9. The medical image processing method according to claim 8, wherein the incidental region detection step detects a region with a color tone change that presents attributes of a color tone change of reddening or discoloration as the incidental region.

10. The medical image processing method according to claim 8, wherein the incidental region detection step detects a region with an abnormal finding that presents attributes of white spots or abnormal blood vessels as the incidental region.

11. The medical image processing method according to claim 8, wherein the detection standard changing step changes, as the detection standard, a threshold value of at least one of a shape index and a curvedness of a feature value that represents a curved shape in the information of the three-dimensional surface shape that is generated.

12. The medical image processing method according to claim 8, wherein in a case where the three-dimensional surface shape of the lesion candidate region detected in the lesion candidate region detecting step is a convex or concave shape, when the incidental region is detected in the incidental region detecting step, the detection standard changing step uses the second detection standard with a degree of the convex or concave shape more relaxed than that in the first detection standard which is used when the incidental region is not detected.