JP7366873B2 - Ultrasonic image display system and its control program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an ultrasound image display system that measures an observation target in an ultrasound image to obtain measured values, and a control program therefor.

2. Description of the Related Art In an examination using an ultrasound diagnostic apparatus, which is an example of an ultrasound image display system, a measurement value may be obtained by measuring the diameter of an observation target such as a tumor displayed in an ultrasound image. (For example, see Patent Document 1).

JP 2017-109074 Publication

After obtaining a measurement value, if the measurement value is a noteworthy value, you may want to display and confirm past ultrasound images in which the same measurement was performed on the observation object from which the measurement value was obtained. . It is cumbersome for the operator to search and display past ultrasound images.

An ultrasound image display system in one embodiment is an ultrasound image display system that includes at least one processor, a memory, an ultrasound probe, and a display. The processor controls the ultrasound probe to perform a first ultrasound scan on the subject, the first ultrasound scan including an observation target on the subject, and the first ultrasound scan including the object to be observed on the subject. control is executed including creating a first ultrasound image including the observation target based on a first echo signal obtained by the ultrasound scan and storing it in the memory. Further, the processor controls the ultrasound probe to perform a second ultrasound scan including the observation target after the first ultrasound image is stored in the memory, and controls the ultrasound probe to perform a second ultrasound scan including the observation target. A second ultrasound image including the observation target is created based on a second echo signal obtained by the sonic scan and displayed on the display, and the observation in the second ultrasound image displayed on the display is performed. The device is configured to perform control including performing measurements on the target and acquiring measured values. Furthermore, the processor determines whether the measured value satisfies a standard, and if the measured value does not meet the standard, the processor reads the first ultrasound image from the memory and displays it on the display. configured to perform control;

According to the ultrasound image display system in the above aspect, when the measured value does not meet the criteria, the processor reads the first ultrasound image from the memory and displays it on the display, so that the operator can search and display the first ultrasound image. You can save yourself the trouble of doing so.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an ultrasound image display device that is an example of an ultrasound image display system according to an embodiment. 2 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in a first execution of a protocol according to an embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a display in a state in which a measurement is performed on an observation target and the measured value is displayed. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in a second execution of the protocol according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a display in which a frame surrounding a measured value is displayed. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a display in which a first ultrasound image and a second ultrasound image are displayed side by side. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in a first execution of a protocol according to a first modification of the embodiment. 12 is a flowchart illustrating an example of processing in a second execution of the protocol according to the first modification of the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing another example of the ultrasound image display system.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiments, a case will be described in which an ultrasound image display system is configured with an ultrasound image display device. The ultrasound image display device is, for example, an ultrasound diagnostic device.

The ultrasound image display device 1 shown in FIG. 1 includes an ultrasound probe 2, a transmission beam former 3, and a transmitter 4. The ultrasound probe 2 performs an ultrasound scan on the subject and receives ultrasound echoes. More specifically, the ultrasound probe 2 includes a plurality of vibration elements 2a that radiate pulsed ultrasound to a subject (not shown). The plurality of vibrating elements 2a are driven by the transmission beam former 3 and the transmitter 4 to emit pulsed ultrasonic waves.

The ultrasound image display device 1 further includes a receiver 5 and a reception beamformer 6. The pulsed ultrasound emitted from the transducer element 2a generates an echo that is reflected within the subject and returns to the transducer element 2a. The echo is converted into an electric signal by the vibrating element 2a, becomes an echo signal, and is input to the receiver 5. After the echo signal is amplified by a required gain in the receiver 5, it is input to the reception beamformer 6, where reception beamforming is performed. The reception beamformer 6 outputs ultrasound data after reception beamforming.

The reception beamformer 6 may be a hardware beamformer or a software beamformer. If the receive beamformer 6 is a software beamformer, the receive beamformer 6 may be a graphics processing unit (GPU), a microprocessor, a central processing unit (CPU), a digital signal processor (DSP), or a device that performs logical operations. may include one or more processors, including any one or more of other types of processors capable of. The processor configuring the reception beamformer 6 may be configured with a processor different from the processor 7 described later, or may be configured with the processor 7.

The ultrasound probe 2 may include electrical circuitry for performing all or part of transmit beamforming and/or receive beamforming. For example, all or part of the transmit beamformer 3, transmitter 4, receiver 5, and receive beamformer 6 may be provided within the ultrasound probe 2.

The ultrasound image display device 1 also includes a processor 7 for controlling a transmit beamformer 3 , a transmitter 4 , a receiver 5 and a receive beamformer 6 . Further, the ultrasound image display device 1 includes a display 8 , a memory 9 , a user interface 10 and a speaker 11 .

Processor 7 includes one or more processors. Processor 7 is in electronic communication with ultrasound probe 2 . The processor 7 can control the ultrasound probe 2 to acquire ultrasound data. The processor 7 controls which of the vibrating elements 2a is active and the shape of the ultrasound beam transmitted from the ultrasound probe 2. Processor 7 is also in electronic communication with display 8 , so that processor 7 can process ultrasound data into ultrasound images for display on display 8 . The term "electronic communications" may be defined to include both wired and wireless communications. Processor 7 may include a central processing unit (CPU) according to one embodiment. According to other embodiments, processor 7 is a digital signal processor, field programmable gate array (FPGA), graphics processing unit (GPU), or other type of processor capable of performing processing functions. Can include electronic components. According to other embodiments, processor 7 may include multiple electronic components capable of performing processing functions. For example, processor 7 may include two or more electronic components selected from a list of electronic components including a central processing unit, a digital signal processor, a field programmable gate array, and a graphics processing unit.

Processor 7 may also include a composite demodulator (not shown) for demodulating the RF data. In another embodiment, demodulation may be performed early in the processing chain.

Processor 7 is configured to perform one or more processing operations on the data according to a plurality of selectable ultrasound modalities. When the echo signals are received, the data can be processed in real time during the scanning session. For purposes of this disclosure, the term "real-time" is defined to include procedures that occur without any intentional delay.

Additionally, data can be temporarily stored in a buffer (not shown) during ultrasound scanning and processed in live or off-line operations rather than in real time. In this disclosure, the term "data" may be used in this disclosure to refer to one or more data sets acquired using an ultrasound image display device.

The ultrasound data is processed by the processor 7 in other or different mode-related modules (e.g. B-mode, color Doppler, M-mode, color M-mode, spectral Doppler, contrast mode, elastography, TVI, strain, strain rate, etc.). It can be processed to create ultrasound image data. For example, one or more modules may generate ultrasound images such as B-mode, color Doppler, M-mode, color M-mode, spectral Doppler, contrast mode, elastography, TVI, strain, strain rate, and combinations thereof. can be generated.

The image beam and/or image frame may be saved and record timing information indicating when the data was acquired into memory. The modules may include, for example, a scan conversion module that performs scan conversion operations to convert image frames from coordinate beam space to display space coordinates. A video processor module may be provided to read image frames from memory and display the image frames in real time while the procedure is being performed on the subject. The video processor module can store image frames in an image memory, from which the ultrasound images are read and displayed on the display 8.

Note that as used herein, the term "image" broadly refers to both visible images and data representing visible images. Furthermore, the term "data" may include raw data, which is ultrasound data before a scan conversion operation, and image data, which is data after a scan conversion operation.

When the processor 7 includes a plurality of processors, the plurality of processors may be in charge of the above-mentioned processing tasks that the processor 7 is in charge of. For example, a first processor can be used to demodulate and decimate the RF signal, and a second processor can be used to further process the data before displaying the image.

Further, for example, when the reception beamformer 6 is a software beamformer, its processing function may be executed by a single processor or by a plurality of processors.

The display 8 is an LED (Light Emitting Diode) display, an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display), an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display, or the like.

Memory 9 is any known data storage medium. In one example, the ultrasound image display device 1 includes a plurality of memories 9, including a non-transitory storage medium and a temporary storage medium as the memory 9. The non-transitory storage medium is, for example, a nonvolatile storage medium such as an HDD (Hard Disk) or a ROM (Read Only Memory). The non-transitory storage medium may include a portable storage medium such as a CD (Compact Disk) or a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk). A program executed by the processor 7 is stored in the non-transitory storage medium. The non-transitory storage medium also stores a protocol, first and second ultrasound images, and information SI1 and SI2, which will be described later. All of these may be stored in the same memory 9, or at least one of them may be stored in a different memory 9.

The temporary storage medium is a volatile storage medium such as RAM (Random Access Memory).

The user interface 10 can accept operator input. For example, the user interface 10 accepts instructions and information input from an operator. The user interface 10 includes a keyboard, hard keys, trackball, rotary control, soft keys, and the like. User interface 10 may include a touch screen displaying soft keys and the like.

The speaker 11 is controlled by the processor 7 and outputs sound. In one example, the speaker 11 outputs sound based on a signal input from the processor 7.

Next, the operation of the ultrasonic image display device 1 of this example will be explained. Hereinafter, acquiring and displaying an ultrasound image according to the protocol stored in the memory 9 will be explained based on the flowchart of FIG. 2. The protocol includes a plurality of image acquisition steps, and each image acquisition step is executed according to the flowchart in FIG. 2 to perform an examination on the subject. In each image acquisition step, at least one of the position and angle of the ultrasound probe on the surface of the subject may be different. Further, in each image acquisition step, the conditions for transmitting and receiving ultrasound waves may be different, and the conditions for creating ultrasound image data may be different. These ultrasonic transmission/reception conditions and ultrasonic image data creation conditions are stored in the memory 9 for each image acquisition step, and constitute the contents of the protocol.

A plurality of protocols may be stored in the memory 9. In this case, when the user interface 10 receives an operator's input to select one of a plurality of protocols, the flowchart of FIG. 2 is started and the inspection is started.
The execution of the protocol in the flowchart of FIG. 2 is defined as a first execution. The first execution of the protocol also includes interrupting the protocol and acquiring a first ultrasound image. The ultrasound scan in step S2 described later in this first execution is defined as a first ultrasound scan, and the ultrasound image created in step S2 described later by the first ultrasound scan is defined as the first ultrasound image. It is defined as Furthermore, an ultrasonic scan, which will be described later and is performed in step S5, which will be described later, after interrupting the first execution of the protocol, is also defined as a first ultrasonic scan. Furthermore, the ultrasound image created in step S5, which will be described later, is also defined as a first ultrasound image.

First, in step S1, the processor 7 reads a protocol from the memory 9. Next, in step S2, the processor 7 starts an image acquisition step included in the protocol. Here, the first image acquisition step included in the protocol is initiated. The processor 7 controls the ultrasound probe 2 to perform an ultrasound scan on the subject according to conditions determined in the image acquisition process. Based on the obtained echo signal, the processor 7 creates a first ultrasound image according to the conditions determined in the image acquisition step, and displays it on the display 8. For example, the conditions include the display depth of the ultrasound image, transmission frequency, transmission focus and reception focus, gain, dynamic range, filter, etc.

The first ultrasound scan may be performed to include an observation target in the subject, and the first ultrasound image may include this observation target.

In step S3, the processor 7 stores the created first ultrasound image in the memory 9. For example, when the user interface 10 receives an input from an operator instructing storage of data of a first ultrasound image, the processor 7 stores the first ultrasound image in the memory 9 . The memory 9 here is, for example, a nonvolatile storage medium. The first ultrasound image is stored with the knowledge that it was acquired in a particular protocol.

The processor 7 may store in the memory 9 information SI1 indicating the image acquisition process being executed among the plurality of image acquisition processes. Information SI1 is stored in association with the first ultrasound image stored in memory 9. In one example, the first ultrasound image may be stored in a DICOM (Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine) format, and the information SI1 may be stored in a DICOM header. Information SI1 may be stored as part of a database.

The information SI1 is information that identifies each of the plurality of image acquisition steps, and may be a number, for example. Information SI1 may be an image number for the first ultrasound image. In this case, by defining a range of image numbers for each of the plurality of image acquisition steps, the image number can be used as information for identifying each of the plurality of image acquisition steps. For example, the range of image numbers for the first image acquisition step is "100" to "199", and the range of image numbers for the second image acquisition step is "200" to "299". , a range of image numbers is determined for each of the plurality of image acquisition steps. The image number may be stored so that it is known that it was assigned in a particular protocol.

However, the information SI1 mentioned here is only an example; for example, the information SI1 indicates an image acquisition step and may be text information other than the image number.

Furthermore, in step S3, the processor 7 performs measurement on the first ultrasound image displayed on the display 8. The measured value obtained in step S3 and the measured value obtained by interrupting the first execution of the protocol are defined as the first measured value. For example, when the user interface 10 receives an operator's input for setting the measurement graphic G, the processor 7 sets the measurement graphic G in the first ultrasound image UI1 based on this input, as shown in FIG. do. The measurement graphic G includes cursors C1 and C2 and a line segment L between the cursors C1 and C2, and is set to the observation target T in the first ultrasound image UI. The measurement graphic G is a measurement tool that measures the distance between the cursors C1 and C2, that is, the length of the line segment L. The processor 7 measures the length of the line segment L and displays the first measurement value V1 on the display 8. The first measurement value is a value in an actual subject. Processor 7 may store the first measurement value in memory 9 .

In step S3, the processor 7 may store the fact that the measurement has been performed in the memory 9 in association with the first ultrasound image. Further, in step S3, the processor 7 may store the type of measurement in the memory 9 in association with the first ultrasound image.

The measurement in step S3 may be performed before the first ultrasound image is stored in the memory 9, or may be performed after the first ultrasound image is stored in the memory 9.

Next, in step S4, the processor 7 determines whether to interrupt execution of the protocol. This "interruption" means a temporary interruption, in other words, a temporary stop. When the user interface 10 receives an input by the operator to interrupt the execution of the protocol, the processor 7 determines to interrupt the execution of the protocol ("YES" in step S4), and the process moves to step S5. On the other hand, when the user interface 10 receives an input from the operator instructing the transition to the next image acquisition step, it is determined not to interrupt the execution of the protocol ("NO" in step S4), and the process advances to step S7.

In step S5, the processor 7 controls the ultrasound probe 2 to start an ultrasound scan that is not included in the protocol, creates a first ultrasound image, and displays it on the display 8. Creating a first ultrasound image after execution of the protocol is interrupted means acquiring a first ultrasound image that deviates from the image acquisition step included in the protocol, in other words, a deviation image.

For example, when the operator interrupts execution of the protocol and acquires the first ultrasound image that deviates from the image acquisition step, the operator interrupts execution of the protocol and acquires the first ultrasound image that deviates from the image acquisition step. , means that an object of interest, such as a suspected lesion, was observed. In one example, the deviation image can be said to be an image for observing the observation target in more detail. Therefore, the first ultrasound image acquired in the image acquisition step immediately before the interruption and the first ultrasound image acquired after the interruption include the same observation target.

The conditions for the ultrasound scan and the conditions for creating the first ultrasound image in step S5 may include conditions that are different from the conditions included in the image acquisition step immediately before the interruption. In one example, the user interface 10 may accept input of conditions by the operator, and the conditions for acquiring the first ultrasound image in step S5 may be set.

For example, the first ultrasound image in step S5 may be created based on an echo signal obtained by changing the angle of the ultrasound probe 2 compared to before the protocol was interrupted. Furthermore, if the first ultrasound image before interruption is a still image, a moving first ultrasound image may be created in step S5.

In step S6, the processor 7 stores the first ultrasound image created in step S5 in the memory 9. The processor 7 performs storage based on the input on the user interface 10, for example, similarly to step S3. The processor 7 also stores information SI2 in the memory 9. The memory 9 here is also a nonvolatile storage medium, for example. When the user interface 10 receives an operator's input for storing the first ultrasound image, the processor 7 executes the storage in the memory 9.

Information SI2 at least indicates that the first execution of the protocol was interrupted at a particular image acquisition step among the plurality of image acquisition steps. Information SI2 is information that indicates that the first execution of the protocol was interrupted at a specific image acquisition step among the plurality of image acquisition steps, and also specifies the first ultrasound image created in step S5. There may be. When a plurality of protocols are stored in the memory 9, the information SI2 may include information indicating a specific protocol among the plurality of protocols.

Information SI2 may be stored in association with the first ultrasound image created in step S5. In one example, the first ultrasound image created in step S5 may also be stored in DICOM format, and the information SI2 may be stored in the DICOM header. Additionally, the information SI2 may be stored as part of a database.

For example, the processor 7 may store the image number as information SI2, similar to information S1. In one example, when the image number is three digits as described above, the processor 7 changes the tens digit of the image number assigned to the first ultrasound image stored in step S3 immediately before interruption. The image number may be given as information SI2. Specifically, if the image number assigned to the first ultrasound image stored immediately before the interruption is "100", the first ultrasound image stored in step S6 after the interruption includes: An image number "110" is assigned. Image numbers "100" to "110" indicate the first ultrasound images stored in step S3, and image numbers "110" and subsequent ones indicate the first ultrasound images stored in step S6. However, in a specific image acquisition step, the range of image numbers assigned to the first ultrasound image stored in step S3 and the range of image numbers assigned to the first ultrasound image stored in step S6 are different from each other. It is only necessary that a range of image numbers be determined, and the above-mentioned example of assigning image numbers is only one example. The image number may be assigned so that it can be recognized that it was assigned in a specific protocol.

In step S6, the processor 7 may store the conditions used to acquire the first ultrasound image in step 5 in the memory 9 in association with the first ultrasound image. The processor 7 may perform the storage of the above-described conditions when the user interface 10 receives an input from an operator who performs storage of the first ultrasound image.

Further, in step S6, the processor 7 performs measurement on the first ultrasound image displayed in step S5 in the same manner as in step S3. The measured value obtained in step S6, that is, the measured value obtained by interrupting the first execution of the protocol, is also defined as the first measured value. The processor 7 may store the first measurement value obtained in step S6 in the memory 9.

In step S6, the processor 7 may store the fact that the measurement has been performed in the memory 9 in association with the first ultrasound image, similarly to step S3. Further, in step S6, the processor 7 may store the type of measurement in the memory 9 in association with the first ultrasound image.

Next, in step S7, the processor 7 determines whether there is a next image acquisition step in the protocol. If it is determined that there is a next image acquisition process ("YES" in step S7), the process returns to step S2 and the next image acquisition process is started. If the first execution of the protocol is interrupted in step S3, the first execution will be restarted by starting the next image acquisition step. On the other hand, if it is determined that there is no next image acquisition step ("NO" in step S7), the first execution of the protocol ends and the examination ends.

Note that when a protocol is executed, a history of execution of the protocol for a specific subject may be stored in the memory 9.

Next, processing when the same protocol is executed on the same subject after the first execution of the protocol is completed will be described based on the flowchart of FIG. 4. The execution of the protocol in the flowchart of FIG. 4 is defined as second execution.

A second execution of the protocol takes place after the first execution of the protocol has finished according to FIG. For example, a second execution of the protocol is performed to acquire an ultrasound image for the purpose of follow-up observation, etc., for the subject for whom the first ultrasound image was acquired in the first execution of the protocol. A second execution of the protocol also includes interrupting the protocol and acquiring a second ultrasound image. The ultrasound scan in step S11 (described later) in this second execution is defined as a second ultrasound scan, and the ultrasound image created in step S11 (described later) by the second ultrasound scan is defined as the second ultrasound image. It is defined as Further, an ultrasonic scan, which will be described later and is performed in step S16, which will be described later, after interrupting the first execution of the protocol, is also defined as a second ultrasonic scan. Furthermore, the ultrasound image created in step S16, which will be described later, is also defined as a second ultrasound image. The first and second ultrasound images acquired in the same image acquisition step in the first and second executions of the protocol include the same observation target.

For example, when the user interface 10 accepts operator input to select a protocol, a second execution of the protocol is initiated. Here, the same protocol that was executed according to FIG. 2 is selected.

By the first execution of the protocol, the memory 9 stores the first ultrasound image acquired in each of the plurality of image acquisition steps and the first ultrasound image acquired after the protocol is interrupted in any of the image acquisition steps. It is assumed that an ultrasound image is stored.

In the flowchart of FIG. 4, steps S10 to S12 are the same as steps S1 to S3 of FIG. 2, and detailed description thereof will be omitted. However, in steps S11 and S12, a second ultrasound image is created, displayed, and stored instead of the first ultrasound image. Furthermore, in step S12, measurements are performed on the observation target in the second ultrasound image. The observation target in this second ultrasound image is the observation target T for which the measurement was performed in step S3. The measured value obtained in step S12, that is, the measured value obtained in the second execution of the protocol, is defined as a second measured value.

In step S13, the processor 7 determines whether the second measured value satisfies the criterion. If the second measured value satisfies the standard ("YES" in step S13), the process moves to step S15. On the other hand, if the second measured value does not meet the criteria ("NO" in step S13), the process moves to step S14.

The criteria will be explained in detail. The criteria, for example, is that it is within a required range from a required value. The required value is, for example, a value such as a preset standard value, or a first measured value in the first ultrasound image. Further, the required range is, for example, a preset range. In addition, in another example, if a plurality of measured values have been obtained in the past for the same observation object as the observation object for which the measurement in step S12 was performed, the required range is the range of the standard deviation of the plurality of measurement values. It may be. For example, if a plurality of past measurement values have been examined multiple times in the past using the same protocol on the same subject and a plurality of first ultrasound images have been acquired for the same image acquisition process, This is the first measurement value in each of the plurality of first ultrasound images acquired in the same image acquisition step as the ultrasound image obtained in .

If the second measured value does not meet the criteria, the processor 7 may store a tag indicating this in the memory 9 in association with the second ultrasound image. The tag may be associated with information SI1.

Next, in step S14, the processor 7 reads the first ultrasound image from the memory 9 and displays it on the display 8. The first ultrasound image read out from the memory 9 is acquired in the same image acquisition process as the second ultrasound image (the image for which the second measurement value was determined not to meet the criteria) was acquired. This is the image that was created. Further, the first ultrasound image read out from the memory 9 is obtained in the same image acquisition step as the second ultrasound image (the image determined that the second measurement value does not meet the standard) was acquired. The image may be created in step S5 after the first execution of the protocol was interrupted in step S5. In one example, the processor 7 uses information SI1 and SI2 (in one example, image number) to search for and read out the first ultrasound image.

The first ultrasound image read out from the memory 9 in step S14 is obtained in the same image acquisition step as the second ultrasound image, and is the same as the measurement performed on the second ultrasound image. It may be an image on which the same type of measurement was performed. Further, the first ultrasound image read out from the memory 9 in step S14 is obtained in step S5 after the first execution of the protocol is interrupted in the same image acquisition step in which the second ultrasound image is acquired. The image may be an image created in , and on which the same type of measurement as the measurement performed in the second ultrasound image was performed. The same type of measurement is, for example, measurement using the same measurement tool. The processor 7 refers to the measurement type stored in the memory 9 and identifies the first ultrasound image in which the same type of measurement was performed.

The first ultrasound image may be read from the memory 9 when the processor 7 determines that the second measurement value does not meet the criteria. In this case, the first ultrasound image is displayed without the operator performing any input operation. As a result, if the second measurement value does not meet the criteria, the operator searches for the first ultrasound image, which is a past image in which the same measurement was performed on the observation object from which the second measurement value was obtained. This saves you the trouble of displaying it.

Further, the first ultrasound image may be read out by the processor 7 when the user interface 10 receives input from an operator. In this case, the processor 7 notifies the determination result of step S13 in step S14. In one example, as shown in FIG. 5, the processor 7 displays the second measurement value by displaying on the display 8 a frame F surrounding the second measurement value V2 displayed alongside the second ultrasound image UI2. Notify that V2 does not meet the criteria. The processor 7 may notify the determination result by changing the color of the second measurement value V2 depending on whether the criterion is met or not. Further, the processor 7 may notify the determination result by outputting sound from the speaker 11. When the operator recognizes that the second measurement value V2 does not meet the criteria, he makes an input on the user interface 10 to display the first ultrasound image. As a result, if the second measurement value does not meet the criteria, the operator searches for the first ultrasound image, which is a past image in which the same measurement was performed on the observation object from which the second measurement value was obtained. You can save yourself the trouble of doing so.

The processor 7 may display the first ultrasound image UI1 and the second ultrasound image UI2 read from the memory 9 side by side, as shown in FIG. The processor 7 may display the first measurement value V1 and the second measurement value V2 side by side.

Next, in step S15, it is determined whether or not to interrupt the execution of the protocol in the same manner as in step S4. If it is determined that the execution of the protocol is to be interrupted ("YES" in step S15), the process moves to step S16. On the other hand, if it is determined not to interrupt the execution of the protocol ("NO" in step S15), the process moves to step S20.

Steps S16 and S17 are similar to steps S5 and S6, and detailed explanation will be omitted. However, in steps S16 and S17, a second ultrasound image is created, displayed, and stored instead of the first ultrasound image. Furthermore, in step S17, measurement is performed on the observation target in the second ultrasound image. The observation target in this second ultrasound image is the observation target T for which the measurement was performed in step S12. The measured value obtained in step S17, that is, the measured value obtained by interrupting the second execution of the protocol, is also defined as a second measured value.

In step S18, the processor 7 determines whether or not the second measured value obtained in step S17 satisfies the criteria in the same manner as in step S13. If the criteria are met ("YES" in step S18), the process moves to step S20. If the criteria are not met ("NO" in step S18), the process moves to step S19.

In step S18, similarly to step S13, if the second measured value does not meet the criteria, the processor 7 associates a tag indicating this with the second ultrasound image and stores it in the memory 9. good. The tag may be associated with information SI2.

In step S19, the processor 7 reads the first ultrasound image from the memory 9 and displays it on the display 8 in the same manner as in step S14. The first ultrasonic image read out from the memory 9 is used to obtain a second ultrasonic image whose second measurement value is determined not to satisfy the standard in step S18 (the second ultrasonic image is read out from the memory 9 in step S16). This is an image (the first ultrasound image created in step S2) that was acquired in the same image acquisition step in which the second execution of the protocol was interrupted (to create the first ultrasonic image in step S2). Further, the first ultrasound image read from the memory 9 is used in the second execution of the protocol in order to obtain the second ultrasound image whose second measurement value is determined not to satisfy the standard in step S18. The image created by performing the first scan after the first execution of the protocol was interrupted in the same image acquisition step as the image acquisition step in which the image acquisition step was interrupted (the first ultrasound image created in step S5) ).

The first ultrasound image read out from the memory 9 in step S19 may also be an image on which the same type of measurement as the measurement performed on the second ultrasound image has been performed, similarly to step S14.

In step S19, the determination result in step S18 may be notified in the same manner as in step S14, or the user interface 10 may receive an input for displaying the first ultrasound image.

The processor 7 may display the first ultrasound image and the second ultrasound image read from the memory 9 side by side, similarly to step S14. Further, the processor 7 may display the first measurement value and the second measurement value side by side.

The first ultrasound image displayed in step S19 may be aligned with the first ultrasound image displayed in step S14.

In step S20, it is determined whether there is a next image acquisition step in the same way as step S7. If it is determined that there is a next image acquisition process ("YES" in step S20), the process returns to step S11, and the next image acquisition process is started. On the other hand, if it is determined that there is no next image acquisition step ("NO" in step S20), the second execution of the protocol ends and the examination ends.

When the same protocol is executed again on the same subject after the second execution of the protocol is completed, the same process as in the flowchart of FIG. 4 is performed. The execution of the protocol in the flowchart of FIG. 4 after the second execution of the protocol is completed is defined as the third execution. In the third run of this protocol, a third ultrasound scan is performed instead of the second ultrasound scan, a third ultrasound image is obtained instead of the second ultrasound image, and a third ultrasound image is obtained instead of the second ultrasound scan. A third measured value is obtained instead of the measured value. In the first, second and third executions of the protocol, the first, second and third ultrasound images acquired in the same image acquisition step include the same observation target.

Among the image acquisition steps in the third execution of the protocol, the processor 7 may display the first and second ultrasound images on the display 8 in step S11, and may also start measurement and display measurement graphics on the display 8 in step S12. The second ultrasound image displayed on the display 8 is an image acquired in the image acquisition step in which it is determined in step S13 in the second execution of the protocol that the second measurement value does not meet the standard. . Further, the first ultrasound image displayed on the display 8 is an image acquired in the same image acquisition process as the image acquisition process in which it was determined that the second measurement value did not meet the standard.

The processor 7 refers to the tag indicating that the second measured value does not meet the reference value, and displays the first and second ultrasound images and starts the measurement in steps S11 and S12 described above.

If it is determined in step S18 in the second execution of the protocol that the second measurement value does not meet the criteria, the processor 7, in step S16 in the third execution of the protocol, 2 may be displayed on the display 8, measurement may be started in step S12, and measurement graphics may be displayed on the display 8.

Next, a modification of the embodiment will be described. First, the first modification will be explained. In a first variant, the first execution of the protocol is carried out according to the flowchart of FIG. 7, and the second execution of the protocol is carried out according to the flowchart of FIG. 8.

In FIG. 7, steps S30, S31, S33, S34 and S36 are the same as steps S1, S2, S4, S5 and S7.

In steps S32 and S35, the processor 7 stores the first ultrasound image in the memory 9 similarly to steps S3 and S6. However, no measurement is performed on the first ultrasound image.

In FIG. 8, steps S40, S41, S42, S43, S45, S46, S47, S48 and S50 are the same as steps S10, S11, S12, S13, S15, S16, S17, S18 and S20 in FIG. .

In steps S44 and S49, the processor 7 displays the first ultrasound image on the display 8 in the same manner as in steps S14 and S19. Further, the processor 7 performs measurement on the first ultrasound image displayed on the display 8 in the same manner as in steps S3 and S6, and obtains a first measurement value.

According to such a first modification, even if no measurement was performed in the first ultrasound image, if the second measurement value in the second ultrasound image does not meet the standard. A first measurement value for the first ultrasound image is obtained. In this way, for the observation object for which the second measurement value did not meet the criteria, the first measurement value is acquired in the first ultrasound image, which is a past image, so it is possible to compare both measurement values. can.

Next, a second modification will be explained. In the above embodiment, an ultrasound image display device has been described as an example of an ultrasound image display system, but as shown in FIG. 9, an ultrasound image display system 100 includes an ultrasound image display device 1 and a server 101. may be configured.

The ultrasound image display device 1 and the server 101 are connected via a network 102. The ultrasonic image display device 1 has the same configuration as that in FIG. 1 . However, in FIG. 9, the processor 7, display 8, memory 9, and user interface 10 of the ultrasound image display device 1 are replaced by the first processor 7, first display 8, first memory 9, and first user interface. This will be explained as 10. As components of the ultrasound image display device 1, only the first processor 7, first display 8, first memory 9, and first user interface 10 are illustrated in FIG. The device 1 also includes other components shown in FIG. 1, such as an ultrasound probe 2. Note that in FIG. 9, each configuration is shown only as a block.

The server 101 has a second processor 103 and a second memory 104. Although not particularly shown, the server 101 includes other known server components.

In the ultrasound image display system 100 as well, processing is performed according to the flowchart shown in FIG. However, the entity that performs the processing is different from the above embodiment. Hereinafter, matters different from the above embodiment will be explained.

In a first execution of the protocol, the first ultrasound image, the information SI1 and the first measurement value may be stored in the second memory 104 of the server 101 in steps S3 and S6. Further, the fact that the measurement was performed and the type of measurement may also be stored in the second memory 104 of the server 101.

Furthermore, in the second execution of the protocol, the second ultrasound image, information SI2 and second measurement value may be stored in the second memory 104 of the server 101 in steps S12 and S17. Further, the fact that the measurement was performed and the type of measurement may also be stored in the second memory 104 of the server 101.

Furthermore, in the second execution of the protocol, the first ultrasound image displayed on the first display 8 in steps S14 and S19 may be an image stored in the second memory 104. In this case, when the first processor 7 requests the first ultrasound image from the server 101 via the network 102, the second processor 103 reads the first ultrasound image from the second memory 104, and It is output to the ultrasound image display device 1 via the network 102.

Although the invention has been described with reference to certain specific embodiments, various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted without departing from the scope of the invention. In addition, many modifications may be made to adapt a particular situation or material to the teachings of the invention without departing from the scope thereof. Therefore, it is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.

For example, if there are multiple first ultrasound images to be displayed in steps S14 and S19, these multiple first ultrasound images may be displayed side by side. The plurality of first ultrasound images may be displayed as thumbnail images, and a selected one may be displayed side by side with the second ultrasound image. In this case, the time change of each measurement value of the plurality of first ultrasound images may be displayed in a graph. The graph may show standard values and standard deviations.

In addition, when the first measured value V1 and the second measured value V2 are displayed as shown in FIGS. 3, 5, and 6, the first measured value V1 and the second measured value V2 are Standard values, standard deviations, etc. may also be displayed.

Further, the first ultrasound image and the second ultrasound image are not limited to those obtained according to the protocol. For example, after a first ultrasound image is created for a certain observation object and stored in the memory 9 or the second memory 104, a second ultrasound image is created and acquired for the same observation object. The first ultrasound image may be displayed when the measured value does not meet the criteria. In this case, the processor 7 generates a first ultrasound image created for the same observation target as the second ultrasound image, such as a comment that is added to the first ultrasound image and includes content specifying the scanned region. The identification may be based on a body pattern including the position of the ultrasound probe 2. Furthermore, the processor 7 may identify the first ultrasound image that includes the same observation target as the second ultrasound image by image recognition.

In addition, even if the first ultrasound image and the second ultrasound image are acquired according to the protocol, the processor 7 uses the first ultrasound image created for the same observation target as the second ultrasound image. The sonic image may be specified based on, for example, a comment that is added to the first ultrasonic image and includes content that specifies the scanned region, or a body pattern that includes the position of the ultrasonic probe 2.

Furthermore, in steps S3 and S6, the processor 7 may determine whether or not the first measured value satisfies the criteria, similar to the determination regarding the second measured value in steps S13 and S18. Similarly to steps S13 and S18, this criterion is, for example, that the value is within a required range from a required value. In one example, the required value is a value such as a preset standard value. Further, the required range is, for example, a preset range.

The processor 7 may notify in steps S3 and S6 that the first measured value does not meet the criteria. The processor 7 may perform the notification by displaying a frame surrounding the first measurement value on the display 8, as in steps S14 and S19. This allows the operator to know that the first measured value does not meet the criteria.

When the processor 7 determines that the first measured value does not meet the criteria, it may store a tag indicating this in the memory 9 in association with the first ultrasound image. The tags may be associated with information SI1 and SI2.

Furthermore, before the measurement in the second ultrasound image is performed in step S12 in the second execution of the protocol, the processor 7 performs a first measurement obtained in the same image acquisition step in the first execution of the protocol. It may be reported that the value (the first measurement value determined not to satisfy the standard in step S3 of the same image acquisition step as the image acquisition step in the second execution of the protocol) does not satisfy the standard. The processor 7 may perform the notification by displaying a frame surrounding the first measurement value on the display 8, as in steps S14 and S19. The processor 7 refers to the tag indicating that the first measurement value does not meet the reference value, and determines whether the first measurement value obtained in the same image acquisition step as the image acquisition step in the second execution of the protocol is Notify that the standards are not met. By being notified that the first measured value does not meet the standard, the operator pays attention or displays the first ultrasound image in which the first measured value that does not meet the standard is acquired. I can do it.

The processor 7 may read the first ultrasound image from the memory 9 and display it on the display 8 before the measurement on the second ultrasound image is performed in step S12 in the second execution of the protocol. This first ultrasonic image is an image in which a first measurement value determined not to meet the criteria in step S3 of the same image acquisition step as the image acquisition step in the second execution of the protocol is acquired. The processor 7 refers to the tag indicating that the first measurement value does not meet the reference value, and generates the first ultrasound image obtained in the same image acquisition step as the image acquisition step in the second execution of the protocol. Search and display. The processor 7 may refer to the tag and automatically display the first ultrasound image. Further, the processor 7 may display the first ultrasound image when the user interface 10 receives input from the operator. If the first ultrasound image is displayed before the measurement on the second ultrasound image is performed in step S12, the process of step S14 may not be performed.

Furthermore, before the measurement is performed on the second ultrasound image in step S17 in the second execution of the protocol, the processor 7 performs measurement on the second ultrasound image obtained by interrupting the same image acquisition process in the first execution of the protocol. 1 measurement value (determined to not meet the criteria in step S6 after the first execution of the protocol was interrupted in the same image acquisition step as the image acquisition step in which the second execution of the protocol was interrupted in step S15) It may also be possible to notify that the first measured value) does not meet the criteria. The processor 7 may perform the notification by displaying a frame surrounding the first measurement value on the display 8, as in steps S14 and S19. The processor 7 refers to the tag indicating that the first measured value does not meet the reference value, and executes the first execution of the protocol in the same image acquisition step as the one in which the second execution of the protocol was interrupted. It is reported that the first measurement value obtained after the interruption of the measurement does not meet the standard.

Furthermore, the processor 7 may read the first ultrasound image from the memory 9 and display it on the display 8 before the measurement on the second ultrasound image is performed in step S17 in the second execution of the protocol. good. This first ultrasound image is the first measurement value that was determined not to meet the criteria in step S6 after the same image acquisition step as the image acquisition step in which the second execution of the protocol was interrupted. is the acquired image. The processor 7 refers to the tag indicating that the first measurement value does not meet the reference value, and determines whether the second execution of the protocol is the same as the image acquisition step that was interrupted. A first ultrasound image is retrieved and displayed. The processor 7 may refer to the tag and automatically display the first ultrasound image. Further, the processor 7 may display the first ultrasound image when the user interface 10 receives input from the operator. If the first ultrasound image is displayed before the measurement on the second ultrasound image is performed in step S17, the process of step S19 may not be performed.

In addition, the above embodiment
A method for controlling an ultrasound image display system comprising at least one processor, a memory, an ultrasound probe, and a display, the method comprising:
In the control method, the processor:
controlling the ultrasound probe to perform a first ultrasound scan on the subject, the first scan including an observation target in the subject;
creating a first ultrasound image including the observation target based on a first echo signal obtained by the first ultrasound scan and storing it in the memory;
After the first ultrasound image is stored in the memory, controlling the ultrasound probe to perform a second ultrasound scan including the observation target;
creating a second ultrasound image including the observation target based on a second echo signal obtained by the second ultrasound scan and displaying it on the display;
measuring the observation target in the second ultrasound image displayed on the display to obtain a measurement value;
Determine whether the measured value satisfies the standard,
The method for controlling an ultrasound image display system may include reading out the first ultrasound image from the memory and displaying it on the display when the measured value does not meet a standard.

1 Ultrasonic image display device 2 Ultrasonic probe 7 Processor, first processor 8 Display, first display 9 Memory, first memory 10 User interface, first user interface 11 Speaker 100 Ultrasonic system 101 Server 104 th 2 memory

Claims (15)

An ultrasound image display system comprising at least one processor, a memory, an ultrasound probe, and a display, the system comprising:
The processor includes:
controlling the ultrasound probe to perform a first ultrasound scan on the subject, the first ultrasound scan including an observation target on the subject;
creating a first ultrasound image including the observation target based on a first echo signal obtained by the first ultrasound scan and storing it in the memory;
After the first ultrasound image is stored in the memory, controlling the ultrasound probe to perform a second ultrasound scan including the observation target;
creating a second ultrasound image including the observation target based on a second echo signal obtained by the second ultrasound scan and displaying it on the display;
measuring the observation target in the second ultrasound image displayed on the display to obtain a measurement value;
Determine whether the measured value satisfies the standard,
An ultrasound image display system configured to perform control including, when the measured value does not meet a criterion, reading the first ultrasound image from the memory and displaying it on the display. The ultrasound image display system according to claim 1, wherein the first ultrasound image is read from the memory when the processor determines that the measured value does not meet a criterion. It also includes a user interface that accepts operator input.
The processor is further configured to notify the determination result when determining that the measured value does not meet a criterion,
The ultrasound image display system according to claim 1, wherein the first ultrasound image is read from the memory when the user interface receives an input by an operator who has recognized the notification of the determination result. The processor includes:
controlling the ultrasound probe to perform the first ultrasound scan and creating the first ultrasound image according to a protocol that includes a plurality of image acquisition steps;
configured to control the ultrasound probe to perform the second ultrasound scan and create the second ultrasound image according to the protocol;
The first ultrasound image read out from the memory is the image acquisition step in which the second ultrasound image in which the measured value was determined not to meet the criteria among the plurality of image acquisition steps was acquired. The ultrasound image display system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the images are acquired in the same image acquisition step. The processor is configured to cause the ultrasound scan to perform the first ultrasound scan after interrupting the protocol in any one of the plurality of image acquisition steps for creating the first ultrasound image. further configured to control a sonic probe and generate the first ultrasound image;
The first ultrasound image read out from the memory is obtained by performing the protocol in the same image acquisition step as the second ultrasound image in which the measurement value was determined not to meet the criteria. The ultrasound image display system according to claim 4, wherein the image is created by performing the first ultrasound scan after the first ultrasound scan is interrupted. The processor causes the ultrasound probe to perform the second scan after interrupting the protocol in any one of the plurality of image acquisition steps for creating the second ultrasound image. further configured to control and create the second ultrasound image;
The first ultrasound image read from the memory is the same image as the image acquisition step at which the protocol was interrupted to acquire the second ultrasound image in which the measurement value was determined not to meet the criteria. The ultrasound image display system according to claim 4, wherein the image is an image acquired in the acquisition step. The processor further includes:
controlling the ultrasound probe to perform the first scan after interrupting the protocol in any one of the plurality of image acquisition steps for creating the first ultrasound image; Furthermore, creating the first ultrasound image,
controlling the ultrasound probe to perform the second scan after interrupting the protocol in any one of the plurality of image acquisition steps for creating the second ultrasound image; and further configured to create the second ultrasound image,
The first ultrasound image read from the memory is the same image as the image acquisition step at which the protocol was interrupted to acquire the second ultrasound image in which the measurement value was determined not to meet the criteria. The ultrasound image display system according to claim 4, wherein the image is created by performing the first scan after the protocol is interrupted in the acquisition step. The processor identifies and reads the first ultrasound image from the memory using a comment that includes content that identifies a scanned region of the first ultrasound scan or a body pattern that includes a position of the ultrasound probe. , an ultrasonic image display system according to any one of claims 1 to 3. The processor is further configured to perform a measurement on the observation target in the first ultrasound image to obtain a first measurement value,
The measurement for acquiring the first measurement value may be performed before storing the first ultrasound image in the memory, or after storing the first ultrasound image in the memory and performing the measurement on the first ultrasound image. carried out before reading the acoustic wave image from the memory,
The measurement value acquired for the observation target in the second ultrasound image is a second measurement value,
2. The first ultrasonic image read from the memory is an image in which the first measurement value was obtained by performing the same type of measurement as the measurement in which the second measurement value was obtained. The ultrasonic image display system according to any one of items 1 to 8. The processor determines whether the first measured value satisfies a standard, and if it is determined that the first measured value does not meet the standard, a measurement is performed to obtain the second measured value. The ultrasonic image display system according to claim 9, wherein the ultrasonic image display system performs at least one of notifying the determination result and reading the first ultrasonic image from a memory and displaying the first ultrasonic image. Any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the processor is further configured to perform measurement on the observation target in the first ultrasound image read from the memory to obtain a first measurement value. The ultrasonic image display system according to item 1. The ultrasound image display system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the memory is a nonvolatile storage medium. The processor further includes:
storing the second ultrasound image in the memory;
controlling the ultrasound probe to perform a third ultrasound scan including the observation target according to the protocol after the second ultrasound image is stored in the memory;
creating a third ultrasound image including the observation target based on a third echo signal obtained by the third ultrasound scan;
Among the image acquisition steps included in the protocol in which the third ultrasound image is created, an image acquisition step in which the second ultrasound image in which the measured value is determined not to meet the criteria is acquired; The ultrasound image according to claim 4, wherein the first ultrasound image and the second ultrasound image acquired in the same image acquisition step as the image acquisition step are displayed on the display in the same image acquisition step. display system. The processor includes:
displaying the third ultrasound image on the display;
Among the image acquisition steps included in the protocol in which the third ultrasound image is created, an image acquisition step in which the second ultrasound image in which the measured value is determined not to meet the criteria is acquired; The ultrasonic image display system according to claim 13 , configured to measure the observation target in the third ultrasonic image displayed on the display and obtain a measured value in the same image acquisition step. . A control program for an ultrasound image display system comprising at least one processor, a memory, an ultrasound probe, and a display, the program comprising:
The control program causes the processor to
controlling the ultrasound probe to perform a first ultrasound scan on the subject, the first scan including an observation target in the subject;
creating a first ultrasound image including the observation target based on a first echo signal obtained by the first ultrasound scan and storing it in the memory;
After the first ultrasound image is stored in the memory, controlling the ultrasound probe to perform a second ultrasound scan including the observation target;
creating a second ultrasound image including the observation target based on a second echo signal obtained by the second ultrasound scan and displaying it on the display;
measuring the observation target in the second ultrasound image displayed on the display to obtain a measurement value;
Determine whether the measured value satisfies the standard,
A control program for an ultrasound image display system that causes a control program to execute a control including reading the first ultrasound image from the memory and displaying the first ultrasound image on the display when the measured value does not meet a standard.