Clinical data file

• US 8,788,285 B2
• Filed: 08/02/2007
• Issued: 07/22/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/02/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Align Technology Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Align Technology Incorporated
• Inventors: Kuo, Eric E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Sereboff, Neal
• Application Number:
  US11/888,695
• Publication Number:
  US 20090037222A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,546 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 705/3
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 10/60 for patient-specific data, e.g. for electronic patient records
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/40 relating to mechanical, radiation or invasive therapies, e.g. surgery, laser therapy, dialysis or acupuncture
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 70/20 relating to practices or guidelines

Abstract

Embodiments are provided for a patient data file menu and methods for creating the same. One embodiment includes a number of patient medical information items including a data type label and a position in a data file menu, a sequence of one or more tabs, where each tab represents a stage in a procedure, and where the patient medical information items are associated with the tab corresponding to the stage in the procedure to which the patient medical information item corresponds, treatment professional information in a treatment professional profile section of the file, and patient personal information in a patient profile section of the file.

Claims

1. A method for presenting medical information, comprising:

receiving a number of patient medical information items including a data type label via a computing device, where at least one of the number of patient medical information items comprises a patient image, where the at least one patient image includes a blacked out area to protect the patient'"'"'s privacy;

converting the number of patient medical information items to a single data format that is different than an original data format of at least one of the number of patient medial information items via the computing device;

importing the number of converted patient medial information items to a patient data file via the computing device;

associating each of the number of patient medial information items with one of a sequence of one or more tabs via the computing device, where each tab represents a stage in an orthodontic treatment process, and where the patient medical information items are associated with the tab corresponding to the stage in the orthodontic treatment process to which each of the number of patient medical information items corresponds;

importing treatment professional information into a treatment professional profile section of the data file via the computing;

importing receiving patient personal information into a patient profile section of the data file via the computing device;

restricting access to at least one of a first portion of the patient personal information and a second portion of the treating professional information by embedding a pass code into the data file via the computing device; and

displaying a first patient medical information item of a particular data type associated with a first tab via the computing device; and

displaying a second patient medical information item of the particular type associated with a second tab in response to an input via the computing device, where the input indicates a request to view patient medical information items of the particular data type, and where the input does not specify a tab.

2. The method of claim 1 further comprising modifying the data file to include an additional tab in the sequence of one or more tabs corresponding to an additional stage in the orthodontic treatment process and additional patient medical information items associated with the additional tab.

3. The method of claim 2, where the data file is unmodifiable except for the addition of the additional tab corresponding to the additional stage in the orthodontic treatment process and the additional patient medical information items.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising associating the patient medical information items with the tab corresponding to the stage in the orthodontic treatment process to which the patient medical information items correspond by a user.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising associating the patient medical information items with the tab corresponding to the stage in the orthodontic treatment process to which the patient medical information items correspond automatically based on the stage in the orthodontic treatment process in which the images were created.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising associating the patient medical information items with the tab according to the stage in the orthodontic treatment process to which the patient medical information items correspond automatically based on the stage in the orthodontic treatment process in which the information items were saved.

7. The method of claim 1, where each stage in the orthodontic treatment process is a time period.

8. The method of claim 1, further including text information, where the text information is at least one of free text in a free text section of the patient file and an image with text associated with the tab corresponding to the stage in the orthodontic treatment process to which the text image corresponds.

9. The method of claim 1, where the patient medical information items include notations on the patient medical information items.

10. The method of claim 1, where at least one patient medical information item is a three-dimensional representation of a dental patient'"'"'s mouth.

11. The method of claim 1, where the data file menu includes a thumbnail of at least one of the patient medical information items.

12. A computing device readable medium having executable instructions which can be executed by a processor to cause a computing device to perform a method, comprising:

receiving clinical data in a plurality of data formats;

converting the clinical data to a single data format that is different than at least one of the plurality of formats;

creating a patient data file, including the clinical data in the single data format, where creating the patient data file includes;

importing patient images into the patient data file, where the patient images each include a data type, and where at least on patient image includes a blacked out area to protect the patient'"'"'s privacy;

associating each of the patient images with a tab in a sequence of one or more tabs, the tab corresponding to a stage in an orthodontic treatment process to which the patient image corresponds;

importing treatment professional information into a treatment professional profile section;

importing patient personal infollnation into a patient profile section;

restricting access to at least one of a first portion of the patient personal information and a second portion of the treating professional information by embedding a pass code into the patient data file; and

saving the patient data file;

displaying a first patient image of a particular data type associated with a first tab; and

displaying a second patient image of the particular data type associated with a second tab in response to an input, where the input indicates a request to view patient images of the particular data type, and where the input does not specify a tab.

13. The medium of claim 12, where the method includes labeling the patient images according to data type.

14. The medium of claim 12, where the method includes positioning at least one patient image in a data file menu.

15. The medium of claim 12, where the method includes:

adding additional patient images; and

associating the additional patient images with an additional tab in the sequence of one or more tabs.

16. The medium of claim 12, where the method includes modifying the patient data file after entering the pass code into the computing device.

17. A computing device comprising:

a processor;

a memory connected to the processor; and

executable instructions storable in the memory and executable by the processor to;

receive clinical data in a plurality of data formats;

convert the clinical data to a single data format that is different than at least one of the plurality of data formats;

import patient images into a patient data file, where the patient images each include a data type, and where at least one patient image includes a blacked out area to protect the patient privacy;

associate the patient images with a tab in a sequence of one or more tabs, where the patient images are associated with the tab corresponding to a stage in an orthodontic treatment process to which the patient image corresponds;

import treatment professional information into a treatment professional profile section of the patient data file;

import receive patient personal information into a patient profile section of the patient data file;

restrict access to at least one of a first portion of the patient personal information and a second portion of the treating professional information by embedding a pass code into the patient data file;

save the patient data file; and

display a first patient image of a particular data type associated with a first tab; and

display a second patient image of the particular data type associated with a second tab in response to an input, where the input indicates a request to view patient images of the particular data type, and where the input does not specify a tab.

18. The computing device of claim 17, where the executable instructions include instructions to send the patient data file to a second computing device.

19. The computing device of claim 17, where the executable instructions include instructions to position the patient images in a data file menu, where the data file menu includes a thumbnail of at least one of the patient images.

20. The computing device of claim 19, where the executable instructions include instructions to select the thumbnail of the patient images to access an enlarged patient image.

21. The computing device of claim 17, where the executable instructions include instructions to:

label the patient images according to data type; and

view the patient images in the sequence of one or more tabs according to data type on a display.

22. A computing device readable medium having executable instructions which can be executed by a processor to cause a first computing device to perform a method, comprising:

receiving a patient data file from a second computing device, where the second computing device displays a user interface including a sequence of one or more tabs, where each tab represents a stage in an orthodontic treatment process;

displaying the patient data file, where the patient data file includes at least one of a thumbnail of a patient image, the one or more tabs in the sequence of tabs, a comment section, patient personal information, and treating professional information;

displaying an unrestricted portion of the patient data file before a pass code is received into the patient data file;

receiving the pass code into the patient data file;

displaying the unrestricted portion of the patient data file and the restricted portion of the data file in response to receiving the pass code;

in response to the patient data file menu including the thumbnail, receiving a thumbnail selection to enlarge the patient image, where the enlarged patient image is of a particular data type, is associated with a first tab. and includes a blacked out area to protect the patient'"'"'s privacy;

receiving an input indicating a request to view patient images of the particular data type where the input does not specify a tab;

in response to receiving the input, displaying a second patient image of the particular data type associated with a second tab;

in response to the patient data file menu including the comment section, displaying comments in the comment section; and

in response to the patient data file menu including the thumbnail and the comment section;

modifying the enlarged patient image; and

associating at least one comment with the modified enlarged patient image.

23. The medium of claim 22, where, in response to the patient data file menu including one or more tabs in the sequence of tabs, the patient data file includes a number of patient images associated with the tabs in the sequence of tabs, and where, in response to the patient data file menu including the thumbnail. the patient images include a data type label and a position on the patient data file menu.

24. The medium of claim 23, where the method includes:

specifying a patient image first data type in response to the patient data file menu including the thumbnail; and

displaying a sequence of patient images associated with the tabs in the sequence of tabs with the first data type label in response to the patient data file menu including the thumbnail and the one or more tabs in a sequence of tabs.

25. The medium of claim 23, where the method includes displaying the number of patient images according to each patient image position on the patient data file menu.

26. The medium of claim 22, where associating at least one comment with the modified enlarged patient image includes inserting a tag with the at least one comment in the comment section.

27. The medium of claim 26, where selecting the tag causes executable instructions to select the modified enlarged patient image.

28. The medium of claim 22, where modifying the enlarged patient image includes saving the modifications to the enlarged patient image separate from the enlarged patient image.

29. The medium of claim 28, where the method includes sending the modifications to the enlarged patient image and the comments in the comment section to at least one of a third computing device and the first computing device.

30. The medium of claim 29, where the method includes receiving the modifications to the enlarged patient image and the comments in the comment section at the computing device and merging the modifications and comments with the patient data file.

31. The medium of claim 22, where, in response to the patient data file menu including the comment section, the method includes protecting the comments in the comment section with a pass code.