Automatically determining ideal treatment plans for complex neuropsychiatric conditions

• US 8,548,823 B2
• Filed: 07/08/2008
• Issued: 10/01/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/2008
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Fueyo, Joanna Lynn, Angell, Robert Lee, Friedlander, Robert R., Kraemer, James R.
• Primary Examiner(s): Le, Michelle
• Application Number:
  US12/169,329
• Publication Number:
  US 20100010831A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,911 Days
• Field of Search: 705 2- 3
• US Class Current: 705/2
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/70 relating to mental therapies, e.g. psychological therapy or autogenous training
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/90 relating to alternative medicines, e.g. homeopathy or oriental medicines
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/20 for computer-aided diagnosis, e.g. based on medical expert systems

Abstract

A computer implemented method, apparatus, and computer program product for modifying neuropsychiatric treatment plans based on efficacy of treatment. A current treatment plan comprising a first set of therapies to treat a set of neuropsychiatric conditions and portions of the medical literature associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions is retrieved. A set of brain scans of the patient is analyzed to determine a set of changes over time associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions. The portions of the medical literature and the set of changes are analyzed to determine a patient rate of response to the treatment plan. If the patient rate of response falls below a threshold expected rate, a set of alternative treatments for the patient is identified. A modified treatment plan is generated using the set of alternative treatments.

Claims

1. A computer implemented method of modifying treatment plans based on efficacy of treatment, the computer implemented method comprising:

a physical processor retrieving a current treatment plan for a patient, wherein the current treatment plan comprises a first set of therapies to treat a set of neuropsychiatric conditions and portions of medical literature associated with the first set of therapies;

the physical processor analyzing a set of scans of the patient to determine a set of changes over time associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions, wherein the set of scans comprises a first set of scans taken at a first time and a second set of scans taken at a second time;

the physical processor analyzing portions of medical literature associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions and the set of changes associated with the neuropsychiatric conditions to determine a patient rate of response to the current treatment plan;

the physical processor, responsive to the patient rate of response to the current treatment plan falling below a threshold expected rate, identifying a set of alternative treatments for the patient; and

the physical processor generating a modified treatment plan using the set of alternative treatments.

2. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

the physical processor presenting a result of analyzing the portions of medical literature associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions, the set of changes associated with the neuropsychiatric conditions, and the treatments in the current treatment plan to a user, wherein the result comprises the current treatment plan and a patient rate of response associated with each neuropsychiatric condition in the set of neuropsychiatric conditions; and

the physical processor, responsive to receiving a selection of at least one neuropsychiatric condition in the set of neuropsychiatric conditions to form a set of selected neuropsychiatric conditions, generating the set of alternative treatments.

3. The computer implemented method of claim 1 wherein the first set of scans taken at the first time are generated prior to beginning implementation of a therapy in the first set of therapies to treat the patient and wherein the second set of scans taken at the second time are generated a given period of time after beginning implementation of the therapy in the first set of therapies.

4. The computer implemented method of claim 1 wherein the set of neuropsychiatric conditions are identified in a current set of diagnoses, and further comprising:

the physical processor receiving an updated set of diagnoses for the patient, wherein the updated set of diagnoses identifies a different set of neuropsychiatric conditions than the current set of diagnoses;

the physical processor analyzing portions of medical literature associated with the different set of neuropsychiatric conditions to identify a set of recommended treatments for the different set of neuropsychiatric conditions; and

the physical processor generating a modified treatment plan using the set of recommended treatments for the different set of neuropsychiatric conditions.

5. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

the physical processor identifying a first set of regions of interest in the first set of scans and a second set of regions of interest in the second set of scans;

the physical processor comparing the first set of regions of interest with the second set of regions of interest;

the physical processor identifying a set of changes in the regions of interest occurring over time based on comparing the first set of regions of interest with the second set of regions of interest, wherein the rate of response is determined based on the set of changes;

the physical processor identifying portions of medical literature associated with the set of changes; and

the physical processor generating a modified treatment plan, wherein the modified treatment plan comprises a set of links to the portions of medical literature associated with the set of changes in the regions of interest.

6. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

the physical processor identifying negative drug interactions, side effects, allergic reactions, and negative effects on pre-existing conditions of the patient associated with a set of alternative treatments for a given neuropsychiatric condition; and

the physical processor presenting the modified treatment plan with the negative drug interactions, side effects, allergic reactions, and negative effects on pre-existing conditions of the patient associated with the set of alternative treatments for the given neuropsychiatric condition.

7. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

the physical processor generating quantitative information describing a set of changes associated with the neuropsychiatric conditions of the patient occurring over time, wherein the quantitative information comprises data describing structural changes and functional changes associated with regions of interest in the set of scans; and

the physical processor comparing the quantitative information with a set of treatment signatures to determine the patient rate of response to the current treatment plan, wherein a treatment signature comprises structural changes and functional changes that are expected to occur during the course of a given treatment.

8. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

the physical processor receiving a set of brain scans for a plurality of patients in various demographic groups having an identified neuropsychiatric condition and undergoing a given therapy, wherein the set of brain scans comprises scans taken over a given period of time; and

the physical processor analyzing the set of brain scans for the plurality of patients to generate the threshold expected rate of response to the given therapy.

9. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

the physical processor analyzing the portions of medical literature and the set of changes to determine a patient rate of response associated with each therapy in the current treatment plan, wherein a given therapy is a therapy to treat a given condition;

the physical processor, responsive to the patient rate of response associated with a given therapy falling below a threshold rate of response for the given therapy, identifying a set of alternative therapies for the given condition; and

generating the modified treatment plan using the set of alternative therapies for the given condition.

10. The computer implemented method of claim 1 further comprising:

the physical processor presenting the modified treatment plan with a set of links, wherein the set of links comprises links to portions of medical literature associated with each therapy in the modified treatment plan.

11. A computer program product for modifying treatment plans based on efficacy of treatment, the computer program product comprising:

a computer usable medium having computer usable program code embodied therewith, the computer usable program code comprising;

computer usable program code configured to retrieve a current treatment plan for a patient, wherein the current treatment plan comprises a first set of therapies to treat a set of neuropsychiatric conditions and portions of medical literature associated with the first set of therapies;

computer usable program code configured to analyze a set of scans of the patient to determine a set of changes over time associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions, wherein the set of scans comprises a first set of scans taken at a first time and a second set of scans taken at a second time;

computer usable program code configured to analyze the portions of medical literature associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions and the set of changes associated with the neuropsychiatric conditions to determine a patient rate of response to the current treatment plan;

computer usable program code configured to identify a set of alternative treatments for the patient in response to the patient rate of response to the current treatment plan falling below a threshold expected rate; and

computer usable program code configured to generate a modified treatment plan using the set of alternative treatments.

12. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising:

computer usable program code configured to present a result of analyzing the portions of medical literature associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions, the set of changes associated with the neuropsychiatric conditions, and the treatments in the current treatment plan to a user, wherein the result comprises the current treatment plan and a patient rate of response associated with each neuropsychiatric condition in the set of neuropsychiatric conditions; and

computer usable program code configured to generate the set of alternative treatments in response to receiving a selection of at least one neuropsychiatric condition from the set of neuropsychiatric conditions to form a subset of selected neuropsychiatric conditions.

13. The computer program product of claim 11 wherein the first set of scans taken at the first time are generated prior to beginning implementation of a therapy in the first set of therapies to treat the patient and wherein the second set of scans taken at the second time are generated a given period of time after beginning implementation of the therapy in the first set of therapies.

14. The computer program product of claim 11 wherein the set of neuropsychiatric conditions associated with the patient are identified in a current set of diagnoses, and further comprising:

computer usable program code configured to receive an updated set of diagnoses for the patient, wherein the updated set of diagnoses identifies a different set of neuropsychiatric conditions than the current set of diagnoses;

computer usable program code configured to analyze portions of medical literature associated with the different set of neuropsychiatric conditions to identify a set of recommended treatments for the different set of neuropsychiatric conditions; and

computer usable program code configured to generate the modified treatment plan using the set of recommended treatments for the different set of neuropsychiatric conditions.

15. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising:

computer usable program code configured to identify a first set of regions of interest in the first set of scans and a second set of regions of interest in the second set of scans;

computer usable program code configured to compare the first set of regions of interest with the second set of regions of interest;

computer usable program code configured to identify a set of changes in the regions of interest occurring over time based on comparing the first set of regions of interest with the second set of regions of interest, wherein the patient rate of response is determined based on the set of changes;

computer usable program code configured to identify portions of medical literature associated with the set of changes; and

computer usable program code configured to generate the modified treatment plan, wherein the modified treatment plan comprises a set of links to the portions of medical literature associated with the set of changes in the regions of interest.

16. The computer program product of claim 11 further comprising:

computer usable program code configured to identify negative drug interactions, side effects, allergic reactions, and negative effects on pre-existing conditions of the patient associated with a set of alternative treatments for a given neuropsychiatric condition; and

computer usable program code configured to present the modified treatment plan with the negative drug interactions, side effects, allergic reactions, and negative effects on pre-existing conditions of the patient associated with the set of alternative treatments for the given neuropsychiatric condition.

17. An apparatus comprising:

a bus system;

a communications system coupled to the bus system;

a memory connected to the bus system, wherein the memory includes computer usable program code; and

a processing unit coupled to the bus system, wherein the processing unit executes the computer usable program code to retrieve a current treatment plan for a patient, wherein the current treatment plan comprises a first set of therapies to treat a set of neuropsychiatric conditions and portions of medical literature associated with the first set of therapies;

analyze a set of brain scans of the patient to determine a set of changes over time associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions, wherein the set of scans comprises a first set of scans taken at a first time and a second set of scans taken at a second time;

analyze the portions of medical literature associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions and the set of changes associated with the neuropsychiatric conditions to determine a patient rate of response to the current treatment plan;

identify a set of alternative treatments for the patient in response to the patient rate of response to the current treatment plan falling below a threshold expected rate; and

generate a modified treatment plan using the set of alternative treatments.

18. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the processing unit further executes the computer usable program code to present a result of analyzing the portions of medical literature associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions, the set of changes associated with the neuropsychiatric conditions, and the treatments in the current treatment plan to a user, wherein the result comprises the current treatment plan and a patient rate of response associated with each neuropsychiatric condition in the set of neuropsychiatric conditions;

and generate the set of alternative treatments in response to receiving a selection of at least one neuropsychiatric condition from the set of neuropsychiatric conditions to form a subset of selected neuropsychiatric conditions.

19. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the first set of scans taken at the first time are generated prior to beginning implementation of a therapy in the first set of therapies to treat the patient and wherein the second set of scans taken at the second time are generated a given period of time after beginning implementation of the therapy in the first set of therapies.

20. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the processing unit further executes the computer usable program code to receive an updated set of diagnoses for the patient, wherein the updated set of diagnoses identifies a different set of neuropsychiatric conditions;

analyze portions of medical literature associated with the different set of neuropsychiatric conditions to identify a set of recommended treatments for the different set of neuropsychiatric conditions; and

generate the modified treatment plan using the set of recommended treatments for the different set of neuropsychiatric conditions.

21. The apparatus of claim 17 wherein the processing unit further executes the computer usable program code to present the modified treatment plan with a set of links, wherein the set of links comprise links to portions of medical literature associated with each therapy in the modified treatment plan.

22. A data processing system for modifying treatment plans based on efficacy of treatment, the system comprising:

a data storage device, wherein the data storage device stores a current treatment plan for a patient, wherein the current treatment plan comprises a first set of therapies to treat a set of neuropsychiatric conditions and portions of medical literature associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions;

a set of electronic medical literature sources, wherein the set of electronic medical literature sources comprises medical literature in an electronic form; and

a treatment plan generator, wherein the treatment plan generator analyzes a set of scans of the patient to determine a set of changes over time associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions, wherein the set of scans comprises a first set of scans taken at a first time and a second set of scans taken at a second time;

analyzes the portions of the medical literature associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions and the set of changes associated with the neuropsychiatric conditions to determine a patient rate of response to the current treatment plan;

identify a set of alternative treatments for the patient in response to the patient rate of response to the current treatment plan falling below a threshold expected rate; and

generate a modified treatment plan, wherein the modified treatment plan comprises the set of alternative treatments.

23. The data processing system of claim 22 wherein the first set of scans taken at the first time are generated prior to beginning implementation of a therapy in the first set of therapies to treat the patient and wherein the second set of scans taken at the second time are generated a given period of time after beginning implementation of the therapy in the first set of therapies.

24. The data processing system of claim 22 further comprising:

a neuroimage analyzer, wherein the neuroimage analyzer analyzes the set of scans to identify a first set of regions of interest in the first set of scans and a second set of regions of interest in the second set of scans, wherein a region of interest is an area that shows an indicator of a neuropsychiatric condition.

25. The data processing system of claim 24 further comprising:

a diagnostic engine, wherein the diagnostic engine generates an updated set of diagnoses based on an analysis of indicators identified in the set of regions of interest and the portions of medical literature associated with the set of neuropsychiatric conditions.