System and method for triggering an imaging process based on non-periodicity in breathing

• US 9,271,692 B2
• Filed: 04/01/2011
• Issued: 03/01/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 04/01/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Varian Medical Systems Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Varian Medical Systems Incorporated (Siemens AG)
• Inventors: Mostafavi, Hassan
• Primary Examiner(s): Smith, Ruth S
• Application Number:
  US13/078,906
• Publication Number:
  US 20120253178A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,796 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/055 involving electronic [EMR] or nuclear [NMR] magnetic resonance, e.g. magnetic resonance imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/1135 by monitoring thoracic expansion
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/032 Transmission computed tomography [CT]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/037 Emission tomography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/541 involving acquisition triggered by a physiological signal
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/13 Tomography A61B8/10, A61B8/12 take precedence; tomography for radiation diagnosis A61B6/02
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/543 involving acquisition triggered by a physiological signal
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/1052 using positron emission tomography [PET] single photon emission computer tomography [SPECT] imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/1055 using magnetic resonance imaging [MRI]
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/1058 using ultrasound imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 2005/1061 using an x-ray imaging system having a separate imaging source
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/1049 for verifying the position of the patient with respect to the radiation beam
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/1067 in real time, i.e. during treatment
• CPC Class Codes: A61N 5/1068 Gating the beam as a function of a physiological signal

Abstract

A method of triggering an imaging process includes obtaining breathing signals, analyzing the breathing signals to identify a non-periodicity in a subject'"'"'s breathing, and generating a signal to cause an imaging process to begin in response to the identified non-periodicity. A computer product having a set of instructions stored in a non-transitory medium, wherein an execution of the instructions causes a method to be performed, the method includes obtaining breathing signals, analyzing the breathing signals to identify a non-periodicity in a subject'"'"'s breathing, and generating a signal to cause an imaging process to begin in response to the identified non-periodicity. A system for triggering an imaging process includes a processor that is configured for obtaining breathing signals, analyzing the breathing signals to identify a non-periodicity in a subject'"'"'s breathing, and generating a signal to cause an imaging process to begin in response to the identified non-periodicity.

Claims

1. A method of triggering an imaging process, comprising:

obtaining breathing signals, the breathing signals representing a breathing of a subject that fluctuates in amplitude in response to the subject breathing freely, wherein the breathing signals are generated in a period during which the subject is allowed to breathe freely;

analyzing the breathing signals to identify a non-periodicity in the breathing of the subject, wherein the identified non-periodicity is a deviation from a normal breathing pattern, the deviation being characterized as to exclude gradual breathing pattern variation that occurs over time; and

after the non-periodicity has occurred, generating a signal to cause an imaging process to begin in response to the identified non-periodicity;

wherein the acts of analyzing and generating are performed during a radiation treatment procedure; and

wherein the method further comprises using an image from the imaging process to verify an item for the radiation treatment procedure.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of analyzing the breathing signals comprises using a signal-phase histogram.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising generating the signal-phase histogram, wherein the signal-phase histogram is generated by obtaining a plurality of signal-phase points, wherein each of the signal-phase points comprises a phase of a respiratory cycle and a signal amplitude.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising updating the signal-phase histogram by removing one or more of the signal-phase points in the signal-phase histogram that are older than a prescribed number of breathing cycle(s).

5. The method of claim 2, wherein the act of analyzing the breathing signals comprises determining if a current signal-phase point or a predicted signal-phase point is within a prescribed range from an average value calculated using data points in the signal-phase histogram.

6. The method of claim 2, wherein the act of analyzing the breathing signals comprises determining if a current signal-phase point or a predicted signal-phase point is within a prescribed range from a median value calculated using data points in the signal-phase histogram.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating a stop-signal to stop a delivery of a treatment radiation beam during the radiation treatment procedure in response to the identified non-periodicity.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the imaging process comprises a CT imaging procedure, a MRI procedure, a PET procedure, a SPECT procedure, a x-ray procedure, an ultrasound procedure, or a tomosynthesis imaging procedure.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of obtaining the breathing signals comprises using a camera.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of using the image to verify an item comprises using the image to verify a position of a target inside the subject'"'"'s body.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the act of using the image to verify an item comprises using the image to verify a model for correlating a position of a target inside the subject'"'"'s body with a phase of a respiratory cycle.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the identified non-periodicity comprises a predicted non-periodicity.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising performing the imaging process, wherein the imaging process is performed using a gating technique.

14. A computer product having a set of instructions stored in a non-transitory medium, wherein an execution of the instructions causes a method to be performed, the method comprising:

obtaining breathing signals representing a breathing of a subject that fluctuates in amplitude in response to the subject breathing freely, wherein the breathing signals are generated in a period during which the subject is allowed to breathe freely;

analyzing the breathing signals to identify a non-periodicity in the breathing of the subject, wherein the identified non-periodicity is a deviation from a normal breathing pattern, the deviation being characterized as to exclude gradual breathing pattern variation that occurs over time; and

after the non-periodicity has occurred, generating a signal to cause an imaging process to begin in response to the identified non-periodicity;

wherein the acts of analyzing and generating are performed during a radiation treatment procedure; and

wherein the method further comprises using an image from the imaging process to verify an item for the radiation treatment procedure.

15. The computer product of claim 14, wherein the act of analyzing the breathing signals comprises using a signal-phase histogram.

16. The computer product of claim 15, wherein the method further comprises generating the signal-phase histogram, wherein the signal-phase histogram is generated by obtaining a plurality of signal-phase points, wherein each of the signal-phase points comprises a phase of a respiratory cycle and a signal amplitude.

17. The computer product of claim 15, wherein the act of analyzing the breathing signals comprises determining if a current signal-phase point or a predicted signal-phase point is within a prescribed range from an average value calculated using data points in the signal-phase histogram.

18. The computer product of claim 15, wherein the act of analyzing the breathing signals comprises determining if a current signal-phase point or a predicted signal-phase point is within a prescribed range from a median value calculated using data points in the signal-phase histogram.

19. The computer product of claim 14, wherein the method further comprises generating a stop-signal to stop a delivery of a treatment radiation beam during the radiation treatment procedure in response to the identified non-periodicity.

20. The computer product of claim 14, wherein the act of using the image to verify an item comprises using the image to verify a position of a target inside the subject'"'"'s body.

21. The computer product of claim 14, wherein the act of using the image to verify an item comprises using the image to verify a model for correlating a position of a target inside the subject'"'"'s body with a phase of a respiratory cycle.

22. A system for triggering an imaging process, comprising:

a breathing monitoring device; and

a processor comprising at least some hardware, the processor configured for;

obtaining, from the breathing monitoring device, breathing signals representing a breathing of a subject that fluctuates in amplitude in response to the subject breathing freely, wherein the breathing signals are generated in a period during which the subject is allowed to breathe freely;

analyzing the breathing signals to identify a non-periodicity in the breathing of the subject, wherein the identified non-periodicity is a deviation from a normal breathing pattern, the deviation being characterized as to exclude gradual breathing pattern variation that occurs over time; and

generating a signal to cause an imaging process to begin in response to the identified non-periodicity after the non-periodicity has occurred;

wherein the processor is configured to perform the acts of analyzing and generating during a radiation treatment procedure; and

wherein the processor is further configured to use an image from the imaging process to verify an item for the radiation treatment procedure.

23. The system of claim 22, wherein the processor is configured for analyzing the breathing signals by using a signal-phase histogram.

24. The system of claim 23, wherein the processor is further configured for generating the signal-phase histogram by obtaining a plurality of signal-phase points, wherein each of the signal-phase points comprises a phase of a respiratory cycle and a signal amplitude.

25. The system of claim 23, wherein the processor is configured to perform the act of analyzing the breathing signals by determining if a current signal-phase point or a predicted signal-phase point is within a prescribed range from an average value calculated using data points in the signal-phase histogram.

26. The system of claim 23, wherein the processor is configured to perform the act of analyzing the breathing signals by determining if a current signal-phase point or a predicted signal-phase point is within a prescribed range from a median value calculated using data points in the signal-phase histogram.

27. The system of claim 23, wherein the processor is further configured for generating a stop-signal to stop a delivery of a treatment radiation beam during the radiation treatment procedure in response to the identified non-periodicity.

28. The system of claim 22, wherein the item comprises a position of a target inside the subject'"'"'s body, and the processor is configured to use the image to verify the position of the target inside the subject'"'"'s body.

29. The system of claim 22, wherein the item comprises a model for correlating a position of a target inside the subject'"'"'s body with a phase of a respiratory cycle, and the processor is configured to use the image to verify the model.