JP5153155B2 - Medical diagnostic imaging apparatus and medical diagnostic imaging program - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a medical image diagnostic apparatus and a medical image diagnostic program, and specifically uses luminance information of medical image data including a tissue image of a subject and auxiliary information used for diagnosis in the same image region. The present invention relates to a medical image diagnostic apparatus and a program for performing measurement.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, apparatuses that capture a tomographic image of a tissue related to an examination site of a subject, such as an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, an X-ray CT apparatus, and a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) apparatus are known.

  In addition, by using the luminance information of each pixel of the captured image data, for example, various data such as IMT (intima-media complex thickness of blood vessel wall) and the area or volume of each chamber of the heart are measured, It is known to use this measurement result for medical diagnosis. Such measurement for medical diagnosis may be performed on an apparatus that has captured a tissue image, and once stored image data is referred to as a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a PC) via a recording medium or a network. ), Etc., and may be performed on a PC.

  While such measurement is being performed, I want to display not only the tissue image of the subject but also auxiliary information such as the electrocardiogram waveform and heart waveform of the subject to perform multifaceted medical diagnosis There is a request. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses ultrasonic image data of a tissue of a subject obtained by transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves to and from a subject via a probe, and a subject measured in synchronization therewith. It describes that a biological signal such as an electrocardiogram waveform or an electrocardiographic waveform of a specimen is synthesized and superimposed.

JP 2004-352022 A

  By the way, when measurement using luminance information as described above is performed on medical image data obtained by synthesizing a tissue image of a subject and a biological signal as described in Patent Document 1, erroneous measurement is performed. May occur.

  That is, the tissue image and the biological signal are both synthesized and recorded in the same image area as gradation information with gradation, and the two cannot be distinguished from each other. Depending on the positional relationship on the image, erroneous measurement may occur. For example, when tracking the movement destination of the set measurement point of the tissue image between different frame data, if there is a biological signal in the range to search for the movement destination, this may be erroneously recognized as a tissue image. , It may lead to erroneous measurement.

  As described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-28339, it is considered that erroneous measurement can be avoided if the tissue image and the biological signal are separated and displayed in different image regions. However, in this case, the display size of the tissue image is small and difficult to observe, and it may be difficult to sufficiently respond to the request to make a diagnosis by observing both of them in the same visual field.

  It is an object of the present invention to improve the reliability of measurement results using luminance information of medical image data that includes a tissue image of a subject and auxiliary information used for diagnosis in the same image region.

In order to solve the above problems, a first aspect of the medical image diagnostic apparatus of the present invention is a display that displays a medical image based on medical image data including a tissue image of a subject and auxiliary information used for diagnosis in the same region. A measurement point setting unit that sets a measurement point on a region of interest on the tissue image displayed on the display unit, a measurement unit that performs measurement based on luminance information at the measurement point of medical image data, and a measurement point And an influence area setting means for setting an area where the auxiliary information affects measurement due to the positional relationship between the auxiliary information and the auxiliary information in a display mode different from the other areas. The means includes auxiliary information extraction means for extracting image data of auxiliary information based on luminance information of medical image data, and influence area calculation means for calculating an area that affects measurement based on image data of auxiliary information. Then, the influence area calculation means acquires coordinate data for each of the image data of the auxiliary information, and measures the area between the maximum value and the minimum value of at least one of the X coordinate and the Y coordinate of each coordinate data. and influencing area, when setting the measurement point, the display representing the influence region in the measurement, and displaying on the display unit together with the medical image.

  That is, when the inspector refers to the image on the display unit and sets the measurement point, a display showing the area where the auxiliary information affects the measurement is displayed. Can be set. Thereby, since the setting of the measurement point in the previous stage of measurement is appropriately performed, it is possible to suppress the possibility of erroneous measurement by erroneously recognizing auxiliary information as a tissue image in the measurement execution stage. As a result, the reliability of the measurement result using the luminance information of the medical image data including the tissue image of the subject and the auxiliary information used for diagnosis in the same image region can be improved.

  In general, the luminance of auxiliary information is often set higher than the luminance of the tissue image. In such a case, the image data of auxiliary information is extracted from the points having luminance higher than the set threshold. It becomes possible to do. If the image data of the auxiliary information is extracted, the affected area can be calculated by various algorithms using these coordinate data. For example, the set of coordinate data itself can be an area that affects measurement, or the area between the maximum and minimum values of the X and Y coordinates of the coordinate data is an area that affects measurement. Can do.

  In addition, when the medical image data is composed of a plurality of frame data having different acquisition times, the affected area setting unit displays the area that affects the measurement differently from the other areas based on all of the plurality of frame data. Can be set to

  When the medical image data is composed of a plurality of frame data, the measurement point is generally set with reference to the image of the first frame data. It is difficult to set measurement points in consideration. However, according to this, for example, an area that affects the measurement is obtained in all the frame data, and the area that is affected so as to include all of these is set to a display mode different from other areas, and this is measured. When setting, it can be displayed on the display unit. Therefore, the inspector can appropriately set the measurement points in consideration of the area that affects the measurement through a series of frame data.

  Moreover, the second aspect of the medical image diagnostic apparatus of the present invention that solves the above-described problem is the luminance information at the set measurement point of the medical image data that includes the tissue image information of the subject and auxiliary information used for diagnosis in the same region. A measurement unit that performs measurement on the basis, a display unit that displays a measurement result of the measurement unit, and a region where the auxiliary information affects measurement due to the positional relationship between the measurement point and the auxiliary information on the display image, An influence area setting means for setting a display mode different from other areas, and an auxiliary information influence confirmation means for confirming the influence on the measurement by the auxiliary information, the auxiliary information influence confirmation means, at the time of execution of the measurement, When the analysis area including the measurement point overlaps with the area that affects the measurement, the fact that the influence of the auxiliary information is included in the measurement result is displayed on the display unit together with the measurement result.

  According to this, when the measurement is executed, whether the auxiliary information has an influence on the measurement, in other words, whether the measurement result may include an erroneous measurement is displayed on the display unit together with the measurement result. Can do. Therefore, for example, if the inspector determines that the influence of the erroneous measurement is great, the inspector can take measures such as setting the measurement point again and restarting the measurement. As a result, the measurement results that are ultimately used for diagnosis judgment are those in which the influence of erroneous measurement is suppressed, so that medical image data that includes the tissue image of the subject and auxiliary information used for diagnosis in the same image region It is possible to improve the reliability of the measurement result using the luminance information.

Further, when setting the measurement point , the influence area setting means can display a display representing the area that affects the measurement on the display unit together with the medical image. When the medical image data is composed of a plurality of frame data having different acquisition times, the influence area setting unit displays the area that affects the measurement differently from other areas based on all of the plurality of frame data. Can be set to When the medical image data is composed of a plurality of frame data having different acquisition times, the auxiliary information influence confirmation unit overlaps the analysis region including the measurement point and the region affecting the measurement for each of the plurality of frame data. And the fact that the influence of the auxiliary information is included in the measurement result of the frame where the overlap occurs can be displayed on the display unit together with the measurement result.

  According to this, since the inspector can determine how much the possibility of erroneous measurement is included among a plurality of frame data, the frame with the possibility of erroneous measurement is excluded and the remaining measurement results are excluded. It is possible to make a diagnosis based on the above, and it is possible to select to set a measurement point again and start measurement again.

  In addition, when the measurement unit includes a process of searching for the movement destination of the measurement point among a plurality of frame data within the setting search range, the analysis region including the measurement point in the auxiliary information influence confirmation unit is set as the setting search range. be able to.

  In other words, if the measurement based on the luminance information includes the tracking process of the movement destination of the measurement point related to the tissue image, if there is auxiliary information within the search range set around the measurement point, this is converted to the measurement point. There is a risk of misrecognizing it as a destination. Therefore, if the overlap between the search range and the area where the auxiliary information affects the measurement is confirmed, it is possible to determine and display the possibility of erroneous measurement.

  As described above, this aspect presents to the inspector whether or not there is a possibility of erroneous measurement at the measurement execution stage, but it can also be used in combination with the function of the first aspect described above. In other words, the measurement results are displayed so that the measurement points can be set properly before the measurement, so that a display showing the area that affects the measurement is displayed and the validity of the measurement results can be judged after the measurement. If the effect of auxiliary information is included in this, it can be displayed. Thereby, the reliability of the measurement result can be further improved.

  Further, in the medical image diagnostic apparatus according to the first and second aspects described above, the auxiliary information used for the diagnosis can be at least one of an electrocardiogram and a heart sound diagram of the subject.

  Also, a probe that transmits and receives ultrasonic waves to the subject, a transmission and reception means that supplies a drive signal to the probe and receives reflected echo signals, and an image configuration that reconstructs an ultrasound image based on the reflected echo signals And medical image data can be ultrasonic image data obtained by transmitting / receiving ultrasonic waves to / from a subject.

Moreover, state-like medical imaging program of the present invention to solve the above problems reads the medical image data including the auxiliary information to be used for tissue image Zo及 beauty diagnosis of the subject stored in the storage unit in the same area and performing measurements on the basis of the luminance information in the setting measurement point of the medical Ryoyo image data, comprising the steps of displaying a measurement result of the measuring means, the position on the display image of the measurement points and the auxiliary information affecting regions in the auxiliary information is measured due to the relationship, and setting the display mode different from other areas, and perform measurements, and the influence region on the measurement and analysis region including a measuring point A step of displaying on the display unit together with the measurement result that the influence of the auxiliary information is included in the measurement result when overlapping .

According to this, the inspector can recognize whether or not the influence of erroneous measurement is included in the measurement result, as described in the medical image diagnostic apparatus of the second aspect described above. An appropriate measurement result can be obtained by performing measurement or the like, and as a result, the reliability of the measurement result can be improved.

In this case, the medical image diagnostic program may include a step of displaying a display representing a region that affects the measurement on the display unit together with the medical image when setting the measurement point. .

According to this, in the same manner as described in the medical image diagnostic apparatus of the first aspect described above, it becomes possible for the inspector to appropriately set the measurement point, and the reliability of the measurement result can be improved. .

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the reliability of the result of a measurement using the luminance information of the medical image data which contains the auxiliary | assistant information used for the tissue image and diagnosis of a subject in the same image area | region can be improved.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of a medical image diagnostic apparatus to which the present invention is applied will be described. In the following description, first, an ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus, an electrocardiograph, and a heart sound meter that acquire medical image data used for measurement by the medical image diagnostic apparatus will be described. Next, the medical image diagnostic apparatus of the present invention that performs measurement based on the luminance information of the acquired medical image data will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus 1 includes an imaging unit that captures an ultrasound image of a subject. The imaging unit includes a probe 10 that transmits and receives ultrasonic waves to and from the subject, and a transmission / reception unit 12 that supplies a driving signal to the probe 10 and receives and processes a reflected echo signal output from the probe 10. And analog-digital conversion means 14 (hereinafter referred to as AD conversion means 14) for converting the reflected echo signal output from the transmission / reception means 12 into a digital signal, and phasing addition of the reflected echo signal output from the AD conversion means 14 The phasing and adding means 16 for performing the reconstruction, the image constructing means 18 for reconstructing an ultrasonic image (for example, a tomographic image) based on the reflected echo signal output from the phasing and adding means 16, and the image constructing means 18. Storage means 20 for storing ultrasonic image data (hereinafter referred to as image memory 20), data synthesizing means 22 to which an ultrasonic image read from the image memory 20 is input, And the like display unit 24 for displaying the. Further, a control means 26 for outputting a control command to the transmission / reception means 12, the AD conversion means 14, the phasing addition means 16, the image construction means 18, the image memory 20, the data synthesis means 22, the display unit 24, and the like is provided.

  The electrocardiograph 30 includes an electrocardiogram detection unit 32 (electrode), a signal amplification unit 34 that performs amplification processing on the detected signal, and an AD conversion unit 36 that performs AD conversion on the signal that has been subjected to amplification processing. And an electrocardiographic waveform data generating means 38 for generating waveform data from the digital signal. The electrocardiographic waveform data is input to the data synthesis unit 22.

  The heart sound meter 40 includes a heart sound detecting means 42 (microphone), a signal amplifying means 44 for performing amplification processing on the detected signal, an AD conversion means 46 for AD converting the signal subjected to processing such as amplification, It comprises a heart waveform data generation means 48 for generating waveform data from this digital signal. The heart sound waveform data is input to the data synthesis means 22.

  In response to the control command from the control means 26, the data synthesizing means 22 synthesizes the ultrasonic image data, the electrocardiographic waveform data, and the electrocardiographic data in synchronism with the same image area, and generates medical image data To do.

The medical image diagnostic apparatus according to the present embodiment will be described by taking as an example a case where the medical image data generated in this way is transferred to a PC via, for example, a recording medium or a network, and measurement is performed on the PC. . However, the present invention is not limited to this configuration, and the function (program) described below may be incorporated in the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus so that the ultrasound diagnostic apparatus functions as a medical image diagnostic apparatus.
(First embodiment)
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an overall configuration of the medical image diagnostic apparatus according to the first embodiment. As shown in FIG. 2, the medical image diagnostic apparatus 50 includes a medical image data memory 52 that stores medical image data, and an image data reading unit 54 that reads image data from the medical image data memory 52. The calculation means 56 for performing measurement for medical diagnosis, which will be described later, on the read data, and the influence of setting the region where the biological signal may affect the measurement based on the read data The area setting unit 58, a measurement point input unit 60 for inputting a measurement point by an inspector, a display unit 62 for displaying a medical image, a measurement result, and the like.

  The calculation means 56 includes a measurement means 64 that performs measurement for medical diagnosis using the luminance information of the read data, and a biological signal influence that confirms whether or not there is a possibility of erroneous measurement due to the influence of the biological signal on the measurement result. A confirmation unit 66 and measurement point setting unit 68 for setting coordinate data corresponding to the measurement point input by the measurement point input unit are configured.

  The influence area setting means 58 includes a biological signal extraction means 70 that extracts a biological signal from the read data, an influence area calculation means 72 that calculates an area where the biological signal affects measurement, and the like.

  The medical image data memory 52 corresponds to a recording medium in which medical image data is stored or a storage unit of a medical image diagnostic apparatus. The measurement point input unit 60 is a function for an inspector to specify measurement points (regions of interest) necessary when performing measurement, and various input devices such as a keyboard, a trackball, and a mouse can be used. The display unit 62 is a so-called display that visualizes medical images read from the medical image data memory and various measurement results to the examiner.

  The image data reading means 54 has a function capable of reading a moving image and a still image that can be normally played back by a Windows (registered trademark) OS, for example, and data and display that can process the read image. It has a function of converting the data into possible data and acquiring the luminance information of the read image.

  The measurement point setting unit 68 has a function of setting a measurement point (region of interest) on an image based on coordinates corresponding to an input from the measurement point input unit 60. The measuring means 64 measures, for example, IMT (intima-media complex thickness of blood vessel wall), heart chambers (left ventricle, left atrium, etc.), myocardial area, volume, and contour length for medical diagnosis. It has a function to perform. However, the measurement is not limited to these, and any measurement using luminance information in the region of interest obtained by the measurement point setting unit 68 of the read medical image data may be used.

  The biological signal effect confirmation unit 66 uses the measurement result of the measurement unit 64 and a display representing the region affected by the biological signal determined by the influence region setting unit 72 described later, and the influence of the biological signal is present on the measurement result. It has a function to check whether it is included.

  The biological signal extracting unit 70 has a function of performing image processing on the image data acquired by the image data reading unit 54 and acquiring the coordinates of the biological signal. For example, the coordinates of the biological signal can be extracted by various algorithms such as extracting data having a luminance larger than the set threshold value of the read image data as the biological signal.

  The influence area setting unit 72 uses, for example, the function of acquiring the maximum value and the minimum value of the deflection width of the Y coordinate from the coordinates of the biological signal acquired by the biological signal extraction unit 70, and the information about the maximum value and the minimum value of the deflection width. It has a function to determine the area affected by the biological signal. In addition, based on this determination, the display unit 62 has a function of displaying a display representing an area affected by the biological signal. Note that when a biological signal is used as the auxiliary information of the subject as in the present embodiment, the calculation can be performed based on the maximum value and the minimum value of the Y coordinate, but depending on the type of auxiliary information, various algorithms can be used. An area that affects measurement can be set.

  Hereinafter, the details of the biological signal influence confirmation unit 66, the biological signal extraction unit 70, and the influence region setting unit 72, which are characteristic parts of the medical image diagnostic apparatus of the present embodiment, will be described together with the operation of the medical image diagnostic apparatus.

  First, measurement points are set before actual measurement is performed. Specifically, the medical image data is read from the data memory. If the data is a still image including one frame data, the image is displayed. If the data is a moving image including a plurality of frame data, the first frame is read. The image is displayed on the display unit 62. The examiner inputs measurement points to the region of interest in the tissue image of the subject via the measurement point input unit 60 while referring to the image on the display unit 62.

  Here, depending on the positional relationship on the image between the set measurement point and the biological signal, erroneous measurement may occur due to erroneous recognition of the biological signal as tissue image data during measurement. Therefore, a display representing a region where a biological signal affects measurement is visualized by the biological signal extraction means 70 and the influence region setting means 72 when the measurement point is set using the following method.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining the visualization of the influence of a biological signal on a still image, and FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the processing for obtaining a region affected by the biological signal and an example of display. In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, the tissue image 74 of the subject, the electrocardiogram waveform 76, and the electrocardiogram 78 are displayed in the same image region. As an example, the electrocardiogram waveform 76 is displayed as an image. At the top, a heart sound waveform 78 is displayed at the bottom of the image.

  As shown in FIG. 3, first, the image data read by the image data reading means 54 is acquired (step 21), and when the image data is acquired correctly, the image processing is performed to obtain a biological signal on the image. The coordinates are extracted (step 22).

  Subsequently, the maximum values 81 and 83 and the minimum values 82 and 84 of the Y coordinate swing width are obtained for the electrocardiogram waveform 76 and the electrocardiogram 78 from the coordinates of the biological signal extracted in step 22 (step 23). . Then, the region between the maximum value 81 and the minimum value 82 and the region between the maximum value 83 and the minimum value 84 are set as regions affected by the biological signal (step 24), and are influenced by the biological signal. A display representing the area is displayed on the display unit 62 (step 25).

  Here, the display representing the area affected by the biological signal is a display mode different from that of the other areas. For example, it can be visualized by applying a translucent filter 86 as shown in FIG. 4, or can be visualized in a display form that can be easily recognized by an inspector. Steps 21 and 22 are mainly realized by the biological signal extraction means 70, and steps 23 to 25 are mainly realized by the influence area setting means 72.

  According to this, when the inspector refers to the image on the display unit 62 and sets the measurement point, the display indicating the region in which the biological signal affects the measurement is displayed. Measurement points can be set. As a result, since the measurement points at the previous stage of measurement are appropriately set, it is possible to suppress the possibility of erroneous measurement by erroneously recognizing a biological signal as a tissue image at the measurement execution stage.

  In the present embodiment, the electrocardiographic waveform 76 and the electrocardiogram 78 have been described as an example of auxiliary information used for diagnosis. However, other than this, auxiliary information other than tissue images such as a number for identifying a subject, for example. However, the present invention can be similarly applied.

  Next, visualization of the influence of a biological signal on a moving image will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5 is a flowchart for visualizing the influence of a biological signal on a moving image, and FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining processing for obtaining a region affected by the biological signal. A plurality of images shown in FIG. 6 shows a series of frame data 90.

  As shown in FIG. 5, first, image data read by the image data reading means 54 is acquired (step 31), and the first frame data is acquired from the image data (step 32). Subsequently, the coordinates of the biological signal on the image are extracted by performing image processing on the first frame data (step 33), and the maximum value and the minimum value of the Y coordinate deflection width are obtained for the heart sound waveform 78. (Step 34).

  By performing the processing of steps 33 and 34 for all the frame data (steps 35 and 36), the maximum value and the minimum value of the Y coordinate of the biological signal are acquired for each of all the frames. Then, an area between the maximum value 87 and the minimum value 88 of the Y coordinate of the biological signal through all the frames is determined as an area affected by the biological signal (step 37), and represents the area affected by the biological signal. The display is displayed on the display unit 62 when the inspector sets measurement points (step 38).

  The specific display mode may be any mode that can be easily recognized by the inspector as in the case described above, but it is preferable that the display mode is visualized by applying a translucent filter 86 as shown. Further, steps 31 to 33, 35, and 36 are realized mainly by the biological signal extraction means 70, and steps 34, 37, and 38 are mainly realized by the influence area setting means 72.

  When the medical image data is composed of a plurality of frame data, the measurement point is generally set with reference to the image of the first frame data. It is difficult to set measurement points in consideration. However, in this embodiment, an area that affects measurement is obtained in all frame data, an area that is affected so as to include all of these is set, and this is displayed on the display unit when setting measurement points. Yes. Therefore, the inspector can appropriately set the measurement points in consideration of the area that affects the measurement through a series of frame data.

  As described above, a display representing a region that may affect the measurement is displayed together with the tissue image, and the examiner inputs a measurement point (region of interest) through the measurement point input unit while referring to the image. . Then, the measurement point setting unit 68 sets a measurement point (region of interest) on the image based on the coordinates corresponding to the input from the measurement point input unit 60 and outputs the measurement point to the measurement unit 64. The measuring unit 64 performs measurement based on the set measurement points and the medical image data read by the image data reading unit 54.

  Here, if the measurement point is not set appropriately, there is a possibility that the influence of the biological signal is included in the measurement result. Therefore, the influence of the biological signal may be included in the measurement result as follows. The presence or absence is judged, and when it is included, the fact is visualized to the examiner. In the following description, as an example of measurement, the measurement point tracking process is performed using luminance information at the measurement point set on the heart wall, and the area, volume, and contour of the left ventricle, left atrium, and myocardium of the heart A case where the length or the like is obtained will be described as an example.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart of an example of a process for determining whether or not there is a possibility that the influence of the biological signal is included in the measurement result, and in the case where it is included, visualizing the fact to the examiner. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a display when there is a possibility that the influence of a biological signal is included in the measurement result. As shown in FIG. 7, first, the area 94 affected by the biological signal of each frame is acquired from the influence area setting means 72 (step 41). Subsequently, the measurement means 64 tracks the measurement points in the region of interest 92 and measures the displacement in the time direction (step 42). The biological signal effect confirmation unit 66 determines that the position of the region of interest 92 is affected by the biological signal. (Step 43). Specifically, it is confirmed whether or not the positional relationship on the display image between the position of the region of interest 92 and the biological signal overlaps.

  If the region of interest 92 is not affected by the biological signal (NO in step 44), the process ends. If the region of interest 92 is affected by the biological signal (YES in step 44), as shown in FIG. 8, a warning is displayed on the display image of the frame data that may be affected, thereby displaying the biological body. The influence of the signal is visualized (step 45).

  According to this, when the measurement is performed, whether the biological signal has an influence on the measurement, in other words, whether the measurement result may include an erroneous measurement is displayed on the display unit together with the measurement result. Can do. Therefore, for example, if the inspector determines that the influence of the erroneous measurement is great, the inspector can take measures such as setting the measurement point again and restarting the measurement. As a result, the measurement result that is finally used for the determination of the diagnosis is one in which the influence of the erroneous measurement is suppressed, so that the medical image including the auxiliary information such as the tissue image of the subject and the biological signal in the same image region The reliability of the measurement result using the luminance information of the data can be improved.

  Next, another example of visualizing the influence of the biological signal on the measurement result will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 9 is a flowchart of another example of the process of determining whether or not there is a possibility that the influence of the biological signal is included in the measurement result and, if included, visualizing it to the examiner. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating another example of the display when there is a possibility that the influence of the biological signal is included in the measurement result.

  As shown in FIG. 9, first, the area 94 affected by the biological signal of each frame is acquired from the influence area setting means 72 (step 51). Subsequently, it is confirmed for each frame whether the position of the region of interest 92 is affected by the biological signal (step 52). Specifically, it is confirmed whether or not the positional relationship on the display image between the position of the region of interest 92 and the biological signal overlaps.

  If the region of interest 92 is not affected by the biological signal (NO in step 53), the process ends. If there is a possibility that the region of interest 92 may be affected by the biological signal (YES in step 53), as shown in FIG. 10, the influence of the biological signal is displayed by filtering the measurement result graph. Is visualized (step 54).

  As shown in the upper part of FIG. 10, for example, among the plurality of frame data, only k to n frames may be affected by the biological signal in the measurement result, and 1 to k and k to the last frame are The case where there is no fear of the influence of the ecological signal is shown. In such a case, as shown in the lower part of the figure, a frame that may be influenced by the biological signal is visualized on the display unit 62 together with the measurement result. That is, the measurement result is displayed as a graph in which the horizontal axis indicates the frame NO and the vertical axis indicates the contour length, area, volume, etc. of each chamber or heart muscle of the heart, and k to n that may be affected by the biological signal. The display mode in the frame is changed by applying a translucent filter 86.

According to this, since the inspector can determine how much the possibility of erroneous measurement is included among a plurality of frame data, the frame with the possibility of erroneous measurement is excluded and the remaining measurement results are excluded. It is possible to make a diagnosis based on the above, and it is possible to select to set a measurement point again and start measurement again.
(Second Embodiment)
FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating an overall configuration of the medical image diagnostic apparatus according to the second embodiment. Since the present embodiment is different from the first embodiment only in that the affected area setting means 72 is not provided, the description of the overlapping parts is omitted.

  In the present embodiment, the biological signal effect confirmation unit 66 has a function of confirming the presence or absence of the influence of the biological signal in the result measured by the measurement unit 64 using the information acquired by the biological signal extraction unit 70. The measurement of this embodiment is a measurement for analyzing the movement of the heart in the time series direction, and is a measurement for automatically analyzing the movement position in each frame with respect to the point set by the examiner. As a method of estimating the next point from the point set by the inspector, a method of estimating the moving position from the luminance information around the set point is used.

  The details of the biological signal influence confirmation unit 66 of the present embodiment will be described along with the operation according to the flowchart shown in FIG. First, the coordinates of the biological signal of each frame are acquired from the biological signal extracting means 70 (step 111). Subsequently, the moving position of the next frame after the measurement point is tracked by the measuring means 64 (step 112). Here, it is assumed that the tracking process is performed by searching the measurement point 100 within a setting search range 102 including the measurement point 100 as shown in the left part of FIG.

  The biological signal effect confirmation unit 66 determines whether or not the coordinates acquired by the biological signal extraction unit are included in the setting search range 102 during the tracking process, and if not included (NO in step 113). It ends as it is. On the other hand, when the coordinates obtained by the biological signal extraction means are included in the setting search range 102 as shown in the right diagram of FIG. 13 (YES in step 113), the background is filtered with the time phase affected by the biological signal. multiply.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the coordinate data of the biological signal extracted by the biological signal extraction unit 70 is handled as a region that affects the measurement without providing the influence region setting unit 72. Thereby, compared with 1st Embodiment, visualization which may affect measurement can be performed more accurately.

  In the present embodiment, it is determined whether or not a biological signal is included in the set search range. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, the biological signal data is used in executing measurement point tracking processing. The possibility of erroneous measurement can be visualized by an inspector using various algorithms, such as determination based on whether or not the test has been performed.

  As described above, the medical image diagnostic apparatus has been described using the first and second embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the medical image data captured by the ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus as in the above-described embodiments. It can also be applied to medical image data acquired by an apparatus such as X-ray CT or MRI.

  In the first and second embodiments, it is possible to visualize a display indicating a region where the biological signal affects the measurement when setting the measurement point, and the biological signal may affect the measurement when performing the measurement. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the medical image diagnostic apparatus may be configured with only one of the functions.

It is a figure which shows the structure of an ultrasonic diagnosing device, an electrocardiograph, and a heart sound meter. It is a figure which shows the whole structure of the medical image diagnostic apparatus of 1st Embodiment. It is a flowchart explaining visualization of the influence of the biomedical signal with respect to a still image. It is a figure which shows an example of the description of the process which calculates | requires the area | region which receives the influence of a biological signal, and a display. It is a flowchart of visualization of the influence of the biomedical signal with respect to a moving image. It is a figure for demonstrating the process which calculates | requires the area | region which receives the influence of a biological signal. It is a flowchart of an example of the process which visualizes the presence or absence of a possibility that the influence of a biomedical signal may be included in the measurement result in 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows an example of a display when there exists a possibility that the influence of a biological signal may be included in a measurement result. It is a flowchart of the other example of the process which visualizes the presence or absence of a possibility that the influence of a biomedical signal may be included in the measurement result in 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the other example of a display when there exists a possibility that the influence of a biological signal may be included in a measurement result. It is a figure which shows the whole structure of the medical image diagnostic apparatus of 2nd Embodiment. It is a flowchart of an example of the process of visualizing the presence or absence of a possibility that the influence of a biological signal is included in the measurement result in 2nd Embodiment to an examiner. It is a figure explaining the determination of the presence or absence of a possibility that the influence of a biological signal may be included in the measurement process and measurement result in 2nd Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Probe 12 Transmission / reception means 50 Medical image diagnostic apparatus 52 Image data memory 54 Image data reading means 56 Calculation means 58 Influence area setting means 60 Measurement point input part 62 Display part 64 Measurement means 66 Biosignal influence confirmation means 68 Measurement point Setting means 70 Biological signal extraction means 72 Influence region calculation means 76 ECG waveform 78 Cardiograms 81 and 83 Maximum value 82 and 84 Minimum value 86 Filter

Claims (11)

A display unit for displaying a medical image based on medical image data including a tissue image of a subject and auxiliary information used for diagnosis in the same image region;
Measurement point setting means for setting a measurement point on a region of interest on the tissue image displayed on the display unit;
Measuring means for measuring based on luminance information of the measurement points of the medical image data;
An influence region setting means for setting a region in which the auxiliary information affects the measurement due to a positional relationship between the measurement point and the auxiliary information on a display image in a display mode different from other regions. ,
The influence area setting means calculates auxiliary information extraction means for extracting image data of the auxiliary information based on luminance information of the medical image data, and calculates an area affecting the measurement based on the image data of the auxiliary information. And an influence area calculation means to
The influence area calculation means acquires coordinate data for each of the image data of the auxiliary information, and measures an area between the maximum value and the minimum value of at least one of the X coordinate and the Y coordinate of each coordinate data. A medical image diagnostic apparatus characterized in that, when setting the measurement point, a display representing the area affecting the measurement is displayed on the display unit together with the medical image. .   Auxiliary information influence confirmation means for confirming the influence of the auxiliary information on the measurement is provided, and the auxiliary information influence confirmation means influences the analysis region including the measurement point and the measurement when the measurement is executed. The medical image diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1, wherein when the region overlaps, the display unit displays together with the measurement result that the influence of auxiliary information is included in the measurement result. A measuring means for performing measurement based on luminance information at a set measurement point of medical image data including a tissue image of a subject and auxiliary information used for diagnosis in the same image region;
A display unit for displaying the measurement result of the measuring means;
An influence area setting means for setting an area where the auxiliary information affects the measurement due to a positional relationship between the measurement point and the auxiliary information on a display image, in a display mode different from other areas;
Auxiliary information influence confirmation means for confirming the influence on the measurement by the auxiliary information,
The auxiliary information influence confirmation unit, when performing the measurement, if the analysis area including the measurement point and the area affecting the measurement overlap, the influence of the auxiliary information is included in the measurement result, A medical image diagnostic apparatus characterized by displaying on the display unit together with the measurement result. The impact area setting means, wherein when setting the measuring points, wherein the display representing the influence region in the measurement, in claim 3 you and displaying on the display unit together with the medical image of medical Ryoyo diagnostic imaging apparatus. The medical image data is composed of a plurality of frame data having different acquisition times, and the influence area setting unit displays the area that affects the measurement differently from other areas based on all of the plurality of frame data. The medical diagnostic imaging apparatus according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the medical image diagnostic apparatus is set as follows. The medical image data is composed of a plurality of frame data having different acquisition times, and the auxiliary information influence confirmation means includes an analysis region including the measurement point and a region affecting the measurement for each of the plurality of frame data. 5. The medical image according to claim 3 , wherein the medical image according to claim 3 or 4 is displayed on the display unit together with the measurement result by confirming the overlap and indicating that the influence of auxiliary information is included in the measurement result of the frame in which the overlap occurs. Diagnostic device.   The measurement unit includes a process of searching for a movement destination of the measurement point within a setting search range between a plurality of frame data, and the analysis region including the measurement point in the auxiliary information influence confirmation unit includes the setting search The medical diagnostic imaging apparatus according to claim 6, wherein the medical image diagnostic apparatus is in a range. The medical image diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1 or 3 , wherein the auxiliary information used for the diagnosis is at least one of an electrocardiogram waveform and a heart sound waveform of the subject. A probe for transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves to the subject, a transmission and reception means for supplying a drive signal to the probe and receiving a reflected echo signal, and an image configuration for reconstructing an ultrasonic image based on the reflected echo signal and means, wherein the medical image data, a medical image diagnostic apparatus according to claim 1 or 3, characterized in that the an ultrasonic image data obtained by transmitting and receiving ultrasonic waves to a subject. A step of reading medical image data including a tissue image of a subject stored in a storage unit and auxiliary information used for diagnosis in the same image region, and performing measurement based on luminance information at a set measurement point of the medical image data; ,
Displaying the measurement result of the measuring means on a display unit;
Setting the region where the auxiliary information affects the measurement due to the positional relationship between the measurement point and the auxiliary information on the display image in a display mode different from other regions;
Executing the measurement and displaying on the display unit together with the measurement result that the influence of the auxiliary information is included when the analysis region including the measurement point and the region affecting the measurement overlap. A medical diagnostic imaging program comprising: The medical device according to claim 10, further comprising a step of displaying, on the display unit together with the medical image, a display representing a region affecting the measurement when setting the measurement point. Diagnostic imaging program.

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