Siemens Aktiengesellschaft

Siemens Healthcare Gmbh

Johann Uebler

Christoph Braun

Michael Scheuering

Carsten Thierfelder

Thilo Hannemann

Dominik Bernhardt

Dieter Böing

Axel Kuettner

Klaus Abraham-Fuchs

Gabriel Haras

Stefan Thesen

Fernando Vega-Higuera

Martin Schlang

Bernhard Weyermann

Dominik Fritz

Jörg Hausleiter

Sören Kuhrt

A method and a device are disclosed for controlling a scanning region of a medical imaging system for subsequent recording of a region of interest of an examination object. Depth image data of the examination object are captured. 2-D image data of at least one 2-D image of the examination object are created and the 2-D image is displayed. The 2-D image data and the depth image data of the examination object are registered to each other at least in some regions. By using the 2-D image, at least one limit position of the scanning region is then determined. Finally, on the basis of the depth image data and the limit position in the 2-D image of the examination object, a limit contour line extending through the limit position is determined and displayed such that the limit contour line is superimposed on the 2-D image of the examination object.

Control of the positioning of a scanning region of a medical imaging system

Embodiments are described herein for determining anatomical landmarks on a patient by virtue of anatomical landmarks being called up from a database with an anatomical model and being converted into individual body dimensions and an individual position of the patient. As a result, anatomical landmarks may be called up from a database, calculated individually for the patient and used as an item of reference location information. The positioning of the patient table is thus considerably accelerated, wherein the accuracy is also improved. Thus, the item of reference location information may be calculated individually for the same patient in a different position or a different patient with different body dimensions by virtue of this item of reference location information being recalculated by the conversion rule for the respective patient.

Automated positioning of a patient table relative to a medical installation

The automated positioning of an examination table relative to a medical-technical imaging installation is provided. A camera image is frozen by a first user interaction. Reference information is defined in the frozen camera image by a second user interaction. An examination table or medical-technical imaging installation with the aid of a positioning system is moved based on congruence between the reference location information with a recording region of the medical-technical imaging installation.

Positioning of an examination table relative to a medical imaging apparatus

In a 3D image of a patient supported on a patient table, the 3D image incorporates depth information about the outline of the patient. The 3D image is received and image information based on the 3D image is displayed on a screen, embedded into a graphical user interface. A first recording area is selectable particularly precisely by the selection being based on the inputting of a first start position and also a first end position in the displayed image information via the graphical user interface. The first recording area is displayed as a graphically highlighted first zone. Furthermore, a first position of the first recording area is determined relative to a recording unit based on the depth information and also based on the selection of the first recording area. This results in the first position being determined rapidly and particularly reliably, in particular in the vertical direction.

Method for selecting a recording area and system for selecting a recording area

A method is disclosed for obtaining a 4D image data record of an object under examination using measured data from a computed tomography system in which projection data are accepted which were acquired by way of the computed tomography system at different imaging time points by way of an helical scan method following the administration of contrast medium to the object under examination). On the basis of the projection data, image data of the object under examination are then reconstructed and linked with the imaging time points to a space/time data record. Then, a parameterized 4D image data model is individualized with adaptation to the space/time data record by varying model parameters. An image processing device and a computed tomography system with an image processing device of this kind are also described.

Method, image processing device and computed tomography system for obtaining a 4D image data record of an object under examination and computer program product with program code sections for carrying out a method of this kind

A method and a data-processing system are disclosed for determining the proportion of calcium in coronary arteries using image data from CT angiography. In at least one embodiment of the method, anatomical landmarks are detected in the image data in the region of the heart and coronary arteries are segmented taking into account the detected landmarks. Regions with an increased HU value compared to a contrast agent surroundings are segmented in the segmented coronary arteries. A proportion of calcium respectively is calculated from the segmented regions for one or more of the segmented coronary arteries. At least the last two steps are carried out fully automatically by a data-processing system. Weighting factors for the individual regions are used when calculating the proportion of calcium, which weighting factors depend on both the threshold for segmenting the respective region and the volume of said region. The method and the data-processing system of at least one embodiment allow the dose exposure of the patient to be reduced and reduce the time expenditure of the user for determining the proportion of calcium.

Method and data-processing system for determining the proportion of calcium in coronary arteries

A method is disclosed for actuating an image output device for the output of slice images, obtained from volume data, of a tissue region including at least one hollow organ section. In at least one embodiment, tangential slice planes at observation points along at least one profile line section through the hollow organ section are determined on the basis of provided volume data. In the process, the profile line section is decomposed into shorter profile line sections such that the generated profile line sections are each situated at least approximately in a plane assigned to the respective profile line section as per a predetermined quality criterion. First tangential slice planes are each assigned to the possible observation points on the associated profile line sections on the basis of these planes. A first tangential slice image is then generated from the volume data for a current observation point on the profile line section on the basis of a first tangential slice plane determined for this observation point. Control commands for the image output device are generated for the output of this slice image and transmitted to the image output device. Moreover, at least one embodiment of the invention relates to an actuation module suitable for this purpose.

Method for actuating an image output device, method for determining tangential slice planes, actuation module and slice plane determination unit

A method and a system are disclosed for computed tomography illustration of the movement of a heart in the cardiac cycle with the aid of a spiral CT. In the method, a patient is administered a contrast medium via an electronically controllable apparatus. A stationary prescan of a cardiac artery is carried out in order to determine the sufficient filling of the artery with the automatically applied contrast medium. When a sufficient contrast medium filling is detected, the current heart rate of the heart being examined is measured, and a maximum possible feed rate for a spiral scan and a duration of the spiral scan are determined on the basis of the current heart rate. Subsequently, the spiral scan is carried out over the heart region with the maximum possible feed rate.

Method and system for computed tomography illustration of the movement of a heart

A method and an apparatus are disclosed for visualizing tubular anatomical structures, in particular vessel structures, in medical 3D image records. The method according to at least one embodiment of the invention includes: providing 3D image data of the tubular anatomical structure; determining a centerline of the tubular anatomical structure in the 3D image data; selecting a point of the centerline; generating a 2D slice image assigned to the point, the 2D slice image representing a sectional plane in the 3D image data, which sectional plane is arranged relative to a section of the centerline, including the point and a prescribable section start point and section end point of the section, such that an orthogonal distance from the sectional plane for each centerline point of the section is less than or equal to a prescribed value R, the value R being selected to be greater than a value R, and Rspecifying the value for which precisely one such sectional plane can be determined; and visually displaying the 2D slice image.

Method and apparatus for visualizing tubular anatomical structures, in particular vessel structures, in medical 3D image records

A system is disclosed for generating, evaluating and distributing computer-tomographical 4D representations of the heart of a patient. The system includes a cardio CT appliance, where a first low-resolution reconstruction of cardio recordings in a multiplicity of cycle phases of the cardiac cycle and subsequent volume rendering of these cardio recordings for 3D representation and examination of the clarity of motion of the representation in the individual cycle phases are performed. This representation is used to select one or two cycle phases with a relatively reduced or even minimal lack of clarity of motion. High-resolution representations of the heart are reconstructed for these selected one or two cycle phases, with the computation and control unit transmitting only the high-resolution representations of the selected cycle phases with a relatively reduced lack of clarity of motion to the at least one workstation as still images, and the workstation being used to perform the evaluation.

System for generating, evaluating and distributing computer-tomographical 4D representations of the heart of a patient

A method for classifying field patterns generated by electrophysiological activities occurring inside the body of a living subject includes the steps of measuring field patterns arising as a result of the electrophysiological activities outside the body of the subject using a multi-channel measuring apparatus, generating feature vectors corresponding to the measured field patterns, supplying the feature vectors to an adaptive classifier, and training the adaptive classifier with training field patterns which have been generated by a localizable surrogate model of the electrophysiological activity. The method includes the further step of generating a probability value for each field pattern at an output of the adaptive classifier which indicates the probability with which each field pattern can be generated by a selected localizable surrogate model. This classification method greatly reduces the number of possible patterns which must be reviewed by a physician in order to evaluate the electrophysiological activity of the subject.

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Nürnberg, Germany

Johann Uebler