Method and diagnostic examination device for estimating an examination duration that is tolerable by a patient

Abstract

In a method and apparatus for determining an examination duration tolerable by a patient in and/or on a diagnostic examination device, the patient to be examined is observed at least in a preliminary stage of the examination concerned, during which measurement parameters are ascertained. From the measurement parameters, an algorithm determines a statement about the dwell capability of the patient in the examination device. The algorithm can be an artificial neural network.

Claims

1. A method for determining an examination duration tolerable by a patient in and/or on a diagnostic examination device, said method comprising: initiating an observation phase in which the patient is observed; ascertaining a measurement parameter relating to the patient during the observation phase; in a computer, using the determined measurement parameter as an input to an estimation algorithm; executing, via the computer, the estimation algorithm to generate an expected examination duration of the patient as an output of the estimation algorithm; terminating the observation phase of the patient at a time after the output is generated; and setting or adjusting examination parameters of the diagnostic examination device in response to the generated expected examination duration such that a duration of an examination of the patient via the diagnostic examination device does not exceed the expected examination duration the patient.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the estimation algorithm is executed as part of an artificial neural network.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: training the estimation algorithm during a learning phase with a number of data sets associated with the patient before executing the estimation algorithm to produce the expected examination duration.

4. The method as claimed in claim 3, comprising wherein the act of training the estimation algorithm comprises training the estimation algorithm using data sets that associate the measurement parameter of the patient with a respective examination duration that is tolerable by the patient.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: continuing the observation phase of the patient beyond a beginning of the examination of the patient in and/or on the examination device.

6. The method as claimed in claim 5, further comprising: adjusting an examination duration performed via the examination device at least once during the examination of the patient.

7. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: training the estimation algorithm, during a learning phase, with a number of data sets associated with the patient (i) before executing the estimation algorithm to generate the expected examination duration, and (ii) after completion or discontinuation of the examination of the patient in and/or on said diagnostic examination device, wherein the examination duration of the examination of the patient is used as a further one of the data sets for the training of the estimation algorithm.

8. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: ascertaining the measurement parameter using a sensor of the examination device.

9. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: ascertaining the measurement parameter using a sensor attached to the patient.

10. The method as claimed in claim 1, further comprising: ascertaining the measurement parameter from the group consisting of a heart rate of the patient, a respiratory rate of the patient, a respiratory rhythm of the patient, a movement pattern of the patient, and a behavioral pattern of the patient.

11. A diagnostic examination apparatus, comprising: a diagnostic examination device with which a patient interacts to conduct an examination of the patient in and/or on said diagnostic examination device; an observational device configured to initiate an observation phase in which the patient is observed; a computer configured to control ascertaining a measurement parameter relating to the patient during the observation phase, wherein the computer is configured; use the determined measurement parameter as an input to an estimation algorithm, execute the estimation algorithm to generate an expected examination duration of the patient as an output of the estimation algorithm; terminate the observation phase of the patient at a time after the output is generate; and setting or adjusting examination parameters of the diagnostic examination device in response to the generated expected examination duration such that a duration an examination of the patient via the diagnostic examination device does not exceed the expected examination duration ref the patient.

12. A non-transitory, computer-readable data storage medium encoded with programming instructions, the storage medium being configured to be loaded into a computer associated with a diagnostic examination device with which a patient interacts to conduct an examination of the patient with the diagnostic examination device, the programming instructions causing the computer to: initiate an observation phase in which the patient is observed; ascertain a measurement parameter relating to the patient during the observation phase; use the determined measurement parameter as an input to an estimation algorithm; execute the estimation algorithm to generate an expected examination duration of the patient as an output of the estimation algorithm; terminate the observation phase of the patient at a time after the output is generated; and setting or adjusting examination parameters of the diagnostic examination device in response to the generated expected examination duration such that a duration of an examination of the patient via the diagnostic examination device does not exceed the expected examination duration of the patient.

13. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the determined measurement parameter comprises a quality metric of a recorded image of the patient acquired by the diagnostic examination device during the observation phase.

14. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the expected examination duration of the patient comprises a computed time period during which the patient is examined via the diagnostic examination device in accordance with a respective quality metric that exceeds a predetermined quality metric threshold.

15. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the determined measurement parameter comprises a measurement of patient motion during the observation phase.

16. The method as claimed in claim 1, wherein the parameters of examination comprise a number of recordings to be carried out via the diagnostic examination device.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) FIG. 1 is a flowchart of an embodiment of the method according to the invention for determining an examination duration tolerable by a patient in and/or on a diagnostic examination device.

(2) FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a diagnostic examination apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

(3) FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a computer program product according to an embodiment of the present invention.

(4) FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a data storage medium according to an embodiment of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

(5) In FIG. 1, following a starting point of the method, a first method step S1 is shown, in which a person is supplied as a patient for a diagnostic examination by an MRI examination device, as a result of which the availability of the patient in the preliminary stage of the examination is ensured. More precisely, the patient is introduced into a tunnel of the MRI examination device in the present exemplary embodiment.

(6) At a preset or adjustable time prior to the actual examination of the patient in the MRI examination device, the observation phase, in which the patient is observed, begins in the method step S2 shown. The observation phase started in this method step S2 can be ended both before the start of the examination by means of the MRI examination device, as well as during the examination and extend, for example, to the end of the examination.

(7) In a subsequent method step S3, which is carried out during the observation phase, physiological measurement parameters of the patient are determined by measuring the heart and respiratory rate of the patient and by recording 3D camera data, for example by means of an observation device of the examination device.

(8) In a method step S4, the measurement parameters determined in method step S3 are entered into an algorithm and processed by this algorithm, for example, in a computing device of the examination device.

(9) In a method step S5, the examination duration which can currently be tolerated by the patient to be examined is determined by the algorithm, in particular, using a trained artificial neural network.

(10) The observation phase of the patient is ended in a method step S6, which is shown in a dashed line following the method step S5. The termination of the observation phase can, however, also take place at another, in particular also earlier, juncture of the method, for example, if sufficient relevant data has already been obtained by determining the measurement parameters, or a continuation of the observation according to an abort criterion no longer makes sense and/or the entire examination has to be aborted.

(11) A method step S7, which is illustrated by a dotted line, illustrates an optional adjustment or adaptation of examination parameters of the MRI examination device which influence the examination duration, such as, for example, the number of recordings to be carried out based on the examination duration determined by the algorithm and tolerable by the patient.

(12) This method step S7 is optional because it is also possible that the correct examination duration has already been set, for example, because the number of images for a particular resolution correlates with the ascertained examination duration tolerable in the specific case, i.e. the determined examination duration tolerable by the patient is greater than or equal to the examination duration required for the currently performed examination.

(13) A method step S0 illustrated in dashed-dotted lines in FIG. 1 represents a likewise optional feedback component of the method in which, on completion of the examination, the actual examination duration is determined and (advantageously only after confirmation by an operator) used for further training, as an extension of the learning phase, of the algorithm.

(14) At the same time, the method step S0 illustrated in dashed-dotted lines also represents the circumstance that the algorithm used can be operated by means of at least one optimized artificial neural network which, in particular, is optimized by means of Deep Learning. The artificial neural network can be trained in the method step S0, as described in detail above.

(15) In principle, after determination of the examination duration tolerable by the patient by means of the algorithm, the method according to the invention can also end with the end point according to one of the method steps S5, S6 or S7, without extending the learning phase of the algorithm.

(16) In some variants, the actual diagnostic examination follows. As aforementioned, however, the method can also be continued while the examination is already taking place in order, for example, to enable a continuous adaptation of the possibly spontaneously changing dwell capability VF (and thus the tolerable examination duration) of the patient.

(17) FIG. 2 shows a diagrammatic block diagram of a diagnostic examination device 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

(18) The examination device 100 has an observation device 10 for observing a patient to be examined and a calculation processor 20. The observation device 10 is designed to initiate an observation phase, to ascertain at least one measurement parameter during the observation phase and to terminate the observation phase, preferably according to one of the embodiments and variants described above.

(19) The calculation processor 20 is designed to process the at least one ascertained measurement parameter using an algorithm′ in order to determine the examination duration tolerable by the patient to be examined, preferably according to one of the embodiments and variants described above.

(20) The examination device 100 may also have a control computer 30 that is designed to set and/or adjust examination parameters of the examination device 100 automatically based on the ascertained examination duration tolerable by the patient to be examined. The adjustment of the examination parameters by the control computer 30 can in particular take place as described in detail above with reference to the method according to the invention.

(21) The control computer 30 can be designed to set the examination parameters so that an examination is performed with an examination duration which is shorter than or equal to the examination duration tolerable by the patient, as described above.

(22) FIG. 3 shows a block diagram as an illustration of a computer program product 40 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The computer program product 40 comprises executable program code 45 which is designed, when executed, to perform the method according to the invention, preferably the method according to one of the embodiments and variants described, for example, the method according to FIG. 1.

(23) FIG. 4 shows a diagrammatic block diagram as an illustration of a data storage medium 50 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The data storage medium 50 is a non-volatile computer-readable data storage medium comprising executable program code 55. The executable program code 55 is designed, when executed, to perform the method according to the invention, preferably the method according to one of the embodiments and variants described, for example, the method according to FIG. 1.

(24) The data storage medium 50 can be a semiconductor storage medium, for example, an SSD hard drive, a CD, a Blu-ray® disc, a DVD or the like.

(25) Although the present invention has been described above with reference to preferred exemplary embodiments, it is not restricted thereto, but can be modified in a wide variety of ways. In particular, the invention can be altered or modified in a variety of ways without departing from the scope of the invention.

(26) The basis of the invention can be summarized as follows: a method for determining an examination duration tolerable by a patient in and/or on a diagnostic examination device and an examination device is proposed. A patient to be examined is observed at least in the preliminary stage of the examination concerned, wherein measurement parameters are ascertained. From the measurement parameters, an algorithm determines a statement about the dwell capability of the patient in the examination device. The algorithm used preferably is an artificial neural network.