Methods and apparatus for generating a risk metric for soft plaque in vessels
First Claim
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1. A method for generating a score for soft plaque content in coronary arteries of a heart using a computer, said method comprising:
- using the computer to generate an estimate of the soft plaque content within at least one object depicted in a medical image, the estimate including a measurement of mass of the soft plaque content;
using the computer to determine a location of the soft plaque content in the heart and a measurement of volume of the soft plaque content; and
using the computer to determine a severity state representative of a health of the heart, the severity state determined based on the measurement of mass of the soft plaque content, the location of the soft plaque content, and the measurement of volume of the soft plaque content; and
using the computer to report the severity state of the health of the heart.
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Abstract
A method for generating a score for soft plaque in coronary arteries includes using the computer to estimate the soft plaque content within at least one object depicted in a medical image, using the computer to determine a plaque score dependent upon the estimated soft plaque content of the at least one object, and using the computer to report the plaque score.
17 Citations
18 Claims
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1. A method for generating a score for soft plaque content in coronary arteries of a heart using a computer, said method comprising:
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using the computer to generate an estimate of the soft plaque content within at least one object depicted in a medical image, the estimate including a measurement of mass of the soft plaque content; using the computer to determine a location of the soft plaque content in the heart and a measurement of volume of the soft plaque content; and using the computer to determine a severity state representative of a health of the heart, the severity state determined based on the measurement of mass of the soft plaque content, the location of the soft plaque content, and the measurement of volume of the soft plaque content; and using the computer to report the severity state of the health of the heart. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6)
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7. A tangible and non-transitory machine-readable medium or media having instructions recorded thereon that are configured to instruct a computer to generate a score for soft plaque content in coronary arteries, the instructions comprising instructions configured to instruct the computer to:
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generate an estimate of the soft plaque content within a heart depicted in a medical image, the estimate including a measurement of mass of the soft plaque content; determine a location of the soft plaque content and a measurement of volume of the soft plaque content in the heart; determine a severity state representative of a health of the heart, the severity state determined based on the measurement of mass of the soft plaque content, the location of the soft plaque content, and the measurement of volume of the soft plaque content; and report the severity state of the health of the heart. - View Dependent Claims (8, 9, 10, 11, 12)
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13. A medical imaging apparatus having a radiation source, a detector array, an image processor, a display, and a memory, said medical imaging apparatus controlled by a computer configured to operate the medical imaging apparatus to produce medical images using the radiation source, the detector array, the image processor, the display, and the memory, and the memory having stored therein instructions configured to instruct the computer to generate a score for soft plaque content in coronary arteries, said instructions comprising instructions configured to instruct the computer to:
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generate an estimate of the soft plaque content within a heart depicted in a medical image, the estimate including a measurement of mass of the soft plaque content; determine a location of the soft plaque content and a measurement of volume of the soft plaque content in the heart; determine a severity state representative of a health of the heart, the severity state determined based on the measurement of mass of the soft plaque content, the location of the soft plaque content, and the measurement of volume of the soft plaque content; and report the severity state of the health of the heart. - View Dependent Claims (14, 15, 16, 17, 18)
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Specification