MAGNETIC RESONANCE EXAMINATION SYSTEM WITH PREFERRED SETTINGS BASED ON DATA MINING

• US 20130265044A1
• Filed: 12/07/2011
• Published: 10/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 12/13/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Senegas, Julien, Von Berg, Jens, Cohen-Solal, Eric, Dries, Sebastian Peter Michael, Lee, Michael Chun-Chieh, Nielsen, Tim, Remmele, Stefanie, Vik, Torbjorn
• Granted Patent: US 9,568,578 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 324/307
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/543 Control of the operation of the MR system, e.g. setting of acquisition parameters prior to or during MR data acquisition, dynamic shimming, use of one or more scout images for scan plane prescription G01R33/546 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/546 Interface between the MR system and the user, e.g. for controlling the operation of the MR system or for the design of pulse sequences
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 40/63 for local operation
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 50/70 for mining of medical data, e.g. analysing previous cases of other patients
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 70/20 relating to practices or guidelines

Abstract

Provided herein is a system and method for performing a magnetic resonance imaging scan using a MR scanner. The method can comprise receiving via a user interface a MR imaging protocol categorizable into a MR scan type of a predefined set of MR scan types. Further, the method can comprise querying a database by providing to the database scan information permitting the database to identify the MR scan type of the MR imaging protocol. The method can further comprise receiving from the database statistical information on the MR scan type which can include statistics on modifications of individual scan parameters of the MR scan type, and providing the statistical information to the user interface. Modifications of the MR imaging protocol can be received from the user interface, resulting in a modified MR imaging protocol, according to which the MR imaging scan can be performed.

Claims

1. A method of performing a magnetic resonance imaging scan using an MR scanner, the method comprising the acts of:

receiving an MR imaging protocol via a user interface, the MR imaging protocol being associated with an MR scan type of a predefined set of MR scan types, wherein the MR imaging protocol includes adjustable parameters of the MR scanner (1) for performing the MR imaging scan using the MR scan type employed at the MR scanner (1) for performing the MR imaging;

querying a database by providing scan information to the database, the scan information permitting the database to analyze the MR imaging protocol for identifying the MR scan type of the MR imaging protocol and generating statistical information on the MR scan type

receiving in response to said querying from the database the statistical information on the MR scan type, said statistical information comprising statistics on modifications of individual scan parameters of the adjustable parameters of the MR scan type,

providing said statistical information to the user interface,

receiving modifications of said MR imaging protocol, said modifications resulting in a modified MR imaging protocol,

performing the MR imaging scan using the modified MR imaging protocol.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the statistical information is based on information about previously performed MR imaging scans employing said MR scan type.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the act of providing said statistical information to the user interface comprises the act of indicating individual scan parameters for which the statistics on modification frequency is above a predefined threshold.

4. The method of claim 2, wherein the statistical information comprises statistics on ranges of modifications of individual scan parameters of the MR scan type.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the statistics on ranges of modifications of individual scan parameters of the MR scan type further comprise threshold ranges for said scan parameters, the threshold ranges including maximum and minimum values of the individual scan parameters.

6. The method of claim 5, further comprising the acts of:

receiving a modification of a scan parameter of the MR imaging protocol via the user interface,

determining if the received modification of the scan parameter is outside the threshold range for said scan parameter; and

providing an indication to the user interface in case the received modification is outside the threshold range.

7. The method of claim 5, further comprising the act of providing said threshold ranges to the user interface.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising the act of providing information about said modified MR imaging protocol to the database.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising the act of analyzing the MR imaging protocol for obtaining an MR scan type of the imaging protocol, wherein the scan information comprises the obtained MR scan type.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the scan information comprises parameters of the MR imaging protocol and/or information on the MR scanner hardware and/or information on the MR scanner software.

13. A non-transitory computer readable medium comprising computer instructions which, when executed by a processor, configure the processor to perform the method as claimed in the claim 1.

11. A method of providing statistical information to a magnetic resonance imaging scanner that employs an MR scan type for performing an MR imaging scan, the method comprising the acts of:

receiving a query from a magnetic resonance imaging scanner, said query comprising scan information permitting the database to analyze the MR imaging protocol for identifying the MR scan type of an MR imaging protocol employed at the scanner for MR imaging;

wherein the MR imaging protocol includes adjustable parameters of the MR scanner for performing the MR imaging scan using the MR scan type employed at the MR scanner for performing the MR imaging,

generating statistical information on the MR scan type, said statistical information comprising statistics on modifications of individual scan parameters of the MR scan type, the statistical information being based on information about previously performed MR imaging scans employing said MR scan type,

providing to the magnetic resonance imaging scanner said statistical information.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the received scan information comprises the MR imaging protocol, wherein the method further comprises the act of analyzing the MR imaging protocol for obtaining the MR scan type of the MR imaging protocol.

14. A system including a controller and magnetic resonance imaging scanner for performing a magnetic resonance imaging scan, the controller being configured to perform the following acts:

receiving an MR imaging protocol via a user interface, the MR imaging protocol being associated with an MR scan type of a predefined set of MR scan types, wherein the MR imaging protocol includes adjustable parameters of the MR scanner for performing the MR imaging scan using the MR scan type employed at the MR scanner for performing the MR imaging;

querying a database by providing scan information to the database, the scan information permitting the database to analyze the MR imaging protocol for identifying the MR scan type of the MR imaging protocol and generating statistical information on the MR scan type;

receiving in response to said querying from the database the statistical information on the MR scan type, said statistical information comprising statistics on modifications of individual scan parameters of the adjustable parameters of the MR scan type;

providing said statistical information to the user interface, receiving modifications of said MR imaging protocol, said modifications resulting in a modified MR imaging protocol; and

performing the MR imaging scan using the modified MR imaging protocol.

15. A database system for providing statistical information to a magnetic resonance imaging scanner, the system being configured for:

receiving a query from the MR imaging scanner, said query comprising scan information permitting the database to analyze an MR imaging protocol for identifying an MR scan type of the MR imaging protocol employed at the MR scanner for MR imaging, wherein the MR imaging protocol includes adjustable parameters of the MR scanner for performing an MR imaging scan using the MR scan type employed at the MR scanner for performing the MR imaging;

generating statistical information on the MR scan type, said statistical information comprising statistics on modifications of individual scan parameters of the MR scan type, the statistical information being based on information about previously performed MR imaging scans employing said MR scan type; and

providing to the magnetic resonance imaging scanner said statistical information.