JPH0773577B2 - Inspection data processor - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an inspection data processing device, and more particularly to an inspection data processing device for displaying an M mode image of a subject.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, the M-mode method has been used to measure the wall motion of the heart. This M-mode system normally emits ultrasonic waves from a cardiac ultrasonic tomography device, that is, one point on the probe, receives the reflected waves, and captures changes in acoustic impedance in the subject as reflected echoes, As a change in the brightness of the bright spot according to the intensity of the reflected echo (A mode method, see FIG. 4A), the bright spot is swept at a constant speed. It is displayed (M mode method, see FIG. 4B). By the way, since this M-mode system reproduces the change with time of the data on the cursor line starting from the ultrasonic wave source on the probe, in principle, on the cursor line starting from the ultrasonic wave source. The current situation is that the heart wall that can be measured is limited. That is, due to the relationship between the anatomical position of the heart and the lungs, the site where ultrasonic waves can be incident is limited to a relatively narrow site on the chest wall. As a commonly used approach, there is a method of observing the heart in slices at various levels in a slice plane perpendicular to the long axis of the left ventricle. , (B) See the conceptual diagram of the short-axis cross section)
However, the heart wall that can be measured by this is, specifically,
It has a problem that it is not possible to measure the wall motion around the entire heart, which is limited to the ventricular septum and the posterior wall of the left ventricle. In addition, in order to analyze the wall motion around the entire left ventricle, it has been attempted to use a two-dimensional centerline method, but there is a problem in the reliability of data, and the reliability of quantitative data Does not exceed the M-mode method.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a device for measuring the wall motion around the entire circumference of the heart using the M-mode method. A further object of the present invention is to provide a device for measuring the wall motion of the entire circumference of the heart using the M-mode method from a tomographic image signal recorded on a recording medium such as a video tape that has already been photographed.

[0004]

In order to achieve the above object, an inspection data processing apparatus of the present invention samples and digitizes a tomographic image signal of a subject obtained by a tomography apparatus and outputs image signal data. An A / D converter, an image signal data memory for recording the image signal data, and image signal data on an arbitrary cursor line on the cross section of the subject from the image signal data recorded in the image signal data memory, and M Means for outputting mode image signal data, and analogizing the M mode image signal data,
A D / A converter that outputs an M-mode image signal of the subject;
An examination data processing device comprising an output device for displaying an M-mode image of a subject upon receiving the M-mode image signal, wherein the output device is a heart centered on a centroid of a ventricle according to an M-mode method. The gist is that the wall motion of the entire circumference is displayed.

[0005]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The present invention will be described below based on the illustrated embodiments. FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of an inspection data processing apparatus. The inspection data processing apparatus samples and digitizes a tomographic image signal of a subject obtained by a cardiac ultrasonic tomography apparatus 1 to output image signal data A / D. The converter 2, the image signal data memory 3 for recording the image signal data, and the image signal data on the arbitrary cursor line on the cross section of the object to be extracted from the image signal data recorded in the image signal data memory 3,
M mode image signal data output device 4 for outputting mode image signal data, D / A converter 5 for analogizing M mode image signal data and outputting M mode image signal of the subject, and subject for receiving the M mode image signal It is composed of an output device 6 such as a video display device or a video printer device for displaying the M mode image. This examination data processing device is configured by externally attaching a computer and a video display or a video printer device as an output device to the conventional cardiac ultrasound tomography device 1, and the examination data processing device in the cardiac ultrasound tomography device. Can be incorporated, and in this case, the device can be downsized, and the accuracy of data processing can be improved by directly manipulating the internal image signal data.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram of cursor line setting of the left ventricular short-axis cross section by the inspection data processing device, and the analysis method by the inspection data processing device will be described based on this drawing. Note that this figure schematically shows the image signal data memory 3 capable of accumulating image signal data for one screen of the video display, and X (rows) so as to fit the 525 scanning lines of the video display. ) Coordinates and Y
The number of image regions (cells) having an address composed of orthogonal coordinates expressed by (column) coordinates is 512. In addition,
As shown in this figure, an electrocardiogram 8 can be displayed on the video display together with a tomographic image (left ventricular short-axis cross section) 7 of the subject obtained by the cardiac ultrasonic tomography apparatus 1. A tomographic image signal of the subject obtained by the cardiac ultrasonic tomography device 1 is converted into an A / D conversion device 2 via a video signal.
, Image data is recorded in the image signal data memory 3 of 512 × 512 array as image signal data. Recording on the image signal data memory 3 is performed over time. From the image signal data recorded in the image signal data memory 3 over time, image signal data on an arbitrary cursor line (for example, on the line segment BC) on the cross section of the subject is temporally changed by the M-mode image signal data output device 4. To obtain and output M-mode image signal data (actually, this operation is performed by a computer). The image signal data on the cursor line passing through the point A can also be obtained by the conventional M mode method. The M-mode image signal data obtained by the M-mode image signal data output device 4 is taken into the D / A converter 5 and converted into an analog signal to output the M-mode image signal of the subject. Upon receiving the M-mode image signal, the M-mode image of the subject is displayed on the output device 6 such as a video display or a video printer device. Thereby, it is possible to simultaneously measure and display data on arbitrary cursor lines.

In this way, the data on any cursor line can be measured and displayed simultaneously, and by applying this, as shown in FIG. 3, with the center of gravity O of the ventricle as the center, a step of 45 degrees ( The angle can be set arbitrarily), and the wall motion of the entire circumference of the heart by the M mode method can be measured and displayed at the same time (multidirectional simultaneous M mode method).

In the above embodiment, an example in which a cardiac ultrasonic tomography apparatus is used as a tomography apparatus for obtaining a tomographic image signal of a subject has been described, but another tomography apparatus, for example, an ultra-high speed computer, is used as the tomography apparatus. A tomography apparatus or a nuclear magnetic resonance tomography apparatus can be used, and M-mode measurement can be performed using these tomography apparatuses. In addition, M mode measurement can be performed by applying a video tape or the like to a reproducing device such as a video tape recorder from the tomographic image signal of the subject recorded on a recording medium such as a video tape that has already been taken. Becomes

[0009]

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a device for measuring the wall motion around the entire circumference of the heart using the M-mode method, and the device has the following effects. Conventionally, as the M mode method, only the data on the cursor line starting from the point A in FIG. 2 can be measured and displayed, whereas the data on the cursor line can be measured and displayed by setting an arbitrary cursor line. , It is possible to quantitatively and accurately analyze the wall motion around the entire left ventricle in the parasternal left ventricle short-axis cross section. Specifically, the M-mode method is used for the wall motion of the heart in the parasternal left ventricular long-axis and short-axis cross-sections and the apex long-axis cross-section, which could not be conventionally measured because ultrasonic waves cannot be transmitted at right angles to the left ventricle. Can be measured accurately. In addition, the multi-direction simultaneous M-mode method can be used to quantitatively analyze the wall motion of the heart over the entire circumference, and since this method uses actual data, it is more reliable than the conventional centerline method. Can get much higher data. Further, as a tomography apparatus for obtaining a tomographic image signal of a subject, in addition to a cardiac ultrasonic tomography apparatus, an ultra-high-speed computer tomography apparatus or a nuclear magnetic resonance tomography apparatus that has not been able to analyze the wall motion of the heart in M mode until now. The apparatus can be used, and the M-mode measurement can be performed using these tomography apparatuses. Further, the M mode measurement can be similarly performed from a tomographic image signal recorded on a recording medium such as a video tape that has already been photographed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of an inspection data processing device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram of setting a cursor line on a left-axis short-axis cross section by the inspection data processing device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram of a multidirectional simultaneous M-mode method by the inspection data processing device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram of conventional A-mode method and M-mode method.

FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram of cross-sectional setting of a left ventricular short-axis fault and a conceptual diagram of short-axis cross-section.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 tomography apparatus 2 A / D conversion apparatus 3 image signal data memory 4 M mode image signal data output apparatus 5 D / A conversion apparatus 6 output apparatus

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An A / D converter (2) for sampling and digitizing a tomographic image signal of a subject obtained by a tomography apparatus (1) and outputting the image signal data, and recording the image signal data. Image signal data memory (3)
A means (4) for extracting image signal data on an arbitrary cursor line on the cross section of the subject from the image signal data recorded in the image signal data memory (3) and outputting M mode image signal data; A D / A converter (5) that converts the mode image signal data into an analog signal and outputs an M-mode image signal of the subject, and an output device (6) that receives the M-mode image signal and displays an image of the M-mode image of the subject. ) And the output device (6), the wall motion of the entire circumference of the heart centering on the center of gravity of the ventricle by the M-mode system is displayed on the output device (6). Inspection data processing device.