METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR DETERMINING A MEASUREMENT START TIME

• US 20160089100A1
• Filed: 05/07/2014
• Published: 03/31/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/07/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Siemens Healthineers AG (Siemens AG)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: KORPORAAL, Johannes Georg
• Granted Patent: US 11,020,081 B2
• Time in Patent Office: 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 5/145 Measuring characteristics of blood in vivo, e.g. gas concentration, pH value; Measuring characteristics of body fluids or tissues, e.g. interstitial fluid, cerebral tissuemeasuring of blood pressure or blood flow A61B5/02; non-radiation detecting or locating of foreign bodies in blood A61B5/06
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7278 Artificial waveform generation or derivation, e.g. synthesising signals from measured signals A61B5/327 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/032 Transmission computed tomography [CT]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/481 involving the use of contrast agents
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/504 for diagnosis of blood vessels, e.g. by angiography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/54 Control of apparatus or devices for radiation diagnosis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/541 involving acquisition triggered by a physiological signal
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/481 involving the use of contrast agent, e.g. microbubbles introduced into the bloodstream analysis of echo signal exploiting properties of a contrast enhancer in devices for short-range imaging with acoustic waves G01S7/52039
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/543 involving acquisition triggered by a physiological signal

Abstract

A method is disclosed for determining a measurement start time for an imaging measurement via a medical imaging system depending on a course of concentration values of a contrast medium in a monitored region of an examination object over time. The method includes detecting the concentration values of the current concentration of the contrast medium in the monitored region at different successive detection times; determining a current examination-specific accumulation model curve on the basis of a course of the concentration values over time; and determining the measurement start time on the basis of the examination-specific accumulation model curve. A method for controlling a medical imaging system, a control device and a medical imaging system for implementing the method are further disclosed.

Claims

1. A method for determining a measurement start time for an imaging measurement via a medical imaging system as a function of a behavior of concentration values of a contrast medium in a monitored region of an examination subject with respect to time, the method comprising:

respectively detecting concentration values of a current concentration of the contrast medium in the monitored region at different respective successive detection times;

determining a current examination-specific enhancement model curve on the basis of a behavior of the concentration values with respect to time; and

determining the measurement start time on the basis of the determined current examination-specific enhancement model curve.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein determination of the current examination-specific enhancement model curve is further based on at least one of a population-averaged enhancement model curve and a population-averaged contrast medium impulse response function.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

acquiring injection protocol data, wherein the determination of the current examination-specific enhancement model curve is further based on the injection protocol data.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the determination of the current examination-specific enhancement model curve includes selection from a plurality of candidate enhancement model curves on the basis of the behavior of the concentration values with respect to time.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the plurality of candidate enhancement model curves are parameterized by different widths.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the plurality of candidate enhancement model curves are parameterized by at least one correction factor.

7. The method of claim 5, wherein the correction factor of each respective one of the plurality of candidate enhancement model curves is chosen such that candidate enhancement model curves having different widths have a substantially identical integral value.

8. The method of claim 6, wherein the correction factor is based on at least one of a current iodine concentration of the contrast medium and a current tube voltage of a computed tomography system used for the current measurement.

9. The method of claim 2, wherein the current examination-specific enhancement model curve is determined by a fitting of at least one of the population-averaged enhancement model curve and the candidate enhancement model curves to the behavior of the concentration values with respect to time.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the fitting of at least one of the population-averaged enhancement model curve and the candidate enhancement model curves the behavior of the concentration values with respect to time comprises at least one of:

shifting of at least one of the population-averaged enhancement model curve and the candidate enhancement model curves relative to the concentration values in respect of a reference concentration value; and

shifting of at least one of the population-averaged enhancement model curve and the candidate enhancement model curves relative to the concentration values in respect of a reference time.

11. The method of claim 2, wherein at least one of a gender-specific, weight-specific, size-specific, defect-specific, and age-specific population-averaged enhancement model curve and/or population-averaged contrast medium impulse response function is used.

12. A method for activating a medical imaging system to generate image data of an examination subject, the method comprising:

determining the measurement start time for an imaging measurement as a function of a behavior of concentration values of a contrast medium in a monitored region of the examination subject with respect to time based upon the method of claim 1; and

activating the medical imaging system to generate image data of an examination subject using the determined measurement start time.

15. A non-transitory computer readable medium, loadable directly into a memory of a control device of a medical imaging system, including program code segments for carrying the method of claim 1 when executed on the control device.

16. The method of claim 2, further comprising:

acquiring injection protocol data, wherein the determination of the current examination-specific enhancement model curve is further based on the injection protocol data.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein the determination of the current examination-specific enhancement model curve includes selection from a plurality of candidate enhancement model curves on the basis of the behavior of the concentration values with respect to time.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein the plurality of candidate enhancement model curves are parameterized by different widths.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the plurality of candidate enhancement model curves are parameterized by at least one correction factor.

20. The method of claim 6, wherein the correction factor of each respective one of the plurality of candidate enhancement model curves is chosen such that candidate enhancement model curves having different widths have a substantially identical integral value.

21. The method of claim 7, wherein the correction factor is based on at least one of a current iodine concentration of the contrast medium and a current tube voltage of a computed tomography system used for the current measurement.

22. The method of claim 19, wherein the correction factor of each respective one of the plurality of candidate enhancement model curves is chosen such that candidate enhancement model curves having different widths have a substantially identical integral value.

23. The method of claim 19, wherein the correction factor is based on at least one of a current iodine concentration of the contrast medium and a current tube voltage of a computed tomography system used for the current measurement.

24. The method of claim 12, wherein the activating of the medical imaging system includes performing an imaging measurement of a target region of the examination subject using the determined measurement start time.

25. A method for activating a medical imaging system to generate image data of an examination subject, the method comprising:

determining the measurement start time for an imaging measurement as a function of a behavior of concentration values of a contrast medium in a monitored region of the examination subject with respect to time based upon the method of claim 2; and

activating the medical imaging system to generate image data of an examination subject using the determined measurement start time.

26. A non-transitory computer readable medium, loadable directly into a memory of a control device of a medical imaging system, including program code segments for carrying the method of claim 2 when executed on the control device.

27. A non-transitory computer readable medium, loadable directly into a memory of a control device of a medical imaging system, including program code segments for carrying the method of claim 12 when executed on the control device.

13. A control device for a medical imaging system, the control device comprising:

an interface, configured to acquire or output a contrast medium administration start time; and

a measurement start time determination unit including an input interface, configured to acquire concentration respective values of a current concentration of a contrast medium in a monitored region of an examination subject at different respective successive detection times,

an enhancement model curve determination unit, configured to determine a current examination-specific enhancement model curve on the basis of a behavior of the concentration values with respect to time, and

a model curve analysis unit configured to determine the measurement start time on the basis of the current examination-specific enhancement model curve.

14. A medical imaging system for generating image data of a target region located inside an examination subject, the medical imaging system comprising the control device of claim 13.