Method for generating information, medical device and non-transitory computer readable medium

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a method for generating information, a medical device and a non-transient computer readable medium. The information generation method comprises the following steps: receiving electronic data of a first medical examination report; analyzing the content of the first medical examination report according to the electronic data; and generating report information according to the analysis result, wherein the report information is used for generating a second medical examination report. According to the method, the operation of manually editing a template or an examination protocol of a medical examination report by a doctor can be saved, and the working efficiency is improved.

Description

Methods for generating information, medical devices, and non-transitory computer-readable media Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of information processing technology, and in particular to a method for generating information, a medical device, and a non-transitory computer-readable medium. Background Technology

[0002] Medical imaging equipment can acquire images of the internal tissues of a subject in a non-invasive manner. For example, the scanning device of a medical imaging equipment can scan a predetermined area of ​​the subject to obtain imaging data containing information about that predetermined area.

[0003] Common medical imaging equipment includes ultrasound imaging systems, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) systems, and computed tomography (CT) scanning systems.

[0004] After a medical imaging device scans the subject, the physician completes a medical examination report based on the scan information. This medical examination report has a predetermined format to meet predetermined requirements.

[0005] It should be noted that the above introduction to the technical background is only for the purpose of providing a clear and complete explanation of the technical solution of this application and facilitating the understanding of those skilled in the art. Summary of the Invention

[0006] In some cases, the information used to generate medical examination reports needs to be updated. This information may include, for example, a template for the medical examination report or the examination protocol (e.g., scanning protocol) for the medical examination involved in the report.

[0007] For example, some hospitals have specific medical examination report templates, so the default template in medical imaging equipment cannot be used directly; or, due to updates to the examination protocols of medical imaging equipment or changes in actual needs, the medical examination report templates must also be updated accordingly. Although existing technologies possess tools for designing medical examination report templates, these tools still require physicians to manually create or modify the templates, which is not only time-consuming but also makes it difficult to accurately obtain the required templates. Furthermore, physicians also need to manually set or edit the examination protocols involved in the medical examination reports, resulting in low efficiency in generating or updating examination protocols.

[0008] To address at least one of the aforementioned technical problems or similar technical problems, embodiments of this application provide a method for generating information, a medical device, and a non-transitory computer-readable medium. In this method for generating information, report information is generated based on the analysis results of a first medical examination report for use in generating a second medical examination report. This eliminates the need for physicians to manually edit templates or examination protocols for medical examination reports, thereby improving work efficiency.

[0009] According to one aspect of the embodiments of this application, a method for generating information is provided, the method comprising:

[0010] Receive electronic data of the first medical examination report;

[0011] Based on the electronic data, the content of the first medical examination report is analyzed; and

[0012] The results of the analysis are used to generate a report, which is then used to generate a second medical examination report.

[0013] According to another aspect of the embodiments of this application, a medical device is provided, the medical device comprising:

[0014] The receiving unit receives the electronic data of the first medical examination report; and

[0015] The processing unit executes the information generation method described in the above embodiments.

[0016] According to another aspect of the embodiments of this application, a non-transitory computer-readable medium is provided, the non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a computer program, which, when executed by a computer, causes the computer to perform the steps of the method described in the above embodiments.

[0017] One of the beneficial effects of this application embodiment is that: in the method of generating information, report information is generated based on the analysis results of the first medical examination report for the generation of the second medical examination report. As a result, physicians do not need to manually edit the template of the medical examination report or the examination protocol, which improves work efficiency.

[0018] Referring to the following description and accompanying drawings, specific implementation methods of the embodiments of this application are disclosed in detail, indicating how the principles of the embodiments of this application can be adopted. It should be understood that the implementation methods of this application are not limited in scope. Within the spirit and scope of the appended claims, the implementation methods of this application include many changes, modifications, and equivalents. Attached Figure Description

[0019] The accompanying drawings, which form part of the specification, are used to provide a further understanding of the embodiments of this application and illustrate the implementation methods of this application, together with the textual description, to explain the principles of this application. Obviously, the drawings described below are merely some embodiments of this application, and those skilled in the art can obtain other implementation methods based on these drawings without creative effort. In the drawings:

[0020] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a method for generating information according to some embodiments of this application;

[0021] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a first medical examination report according to an embodiment of this application;

[0022] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the method for analyzing the contents of the first medical examination report;

[0023] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the inspection report template generated by operation 103;

[0024] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a generation and inspection protocol according to an embodiment of this application;

[0025] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the interface generated by operation 104;

[0026] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of a medical device according to an embodiment of this application;

[0027] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of an ultrasound imaging system according to an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0028] Referring to the accompanying drawings, the foregoing and other features of the embodiments of this application will become apparent from the following description. Specific embodiments of this application are specifically disclosed in the description and drawings, illustrating partial implementations in which the principles of the embodiments of this application can be adopted. It should be understood that this application is not limited to the described embodiments; rather, the embodiments of this application include all modifications, variations, and equivalents falling within the scope of the appended claims.

[0029] In the embodiments of this application, the terms "first," "second," etc., are used to distinguish different elements by name, but do not indicate the spatial arrangement or temporal order of these elements, and these elements should not be limited by these terms. The term "and / or" includes any one or more of the associated listed terms and all combinations thereof. The terms "comprising," "including," "having," etc., refer to the presence of the stated features, elements, components, or assemblies, but do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, elements, components, or assemblies. The terms "pixel" and "voxel" are used interchangeably.

[0030] In the embodiments of this application, the singular forms "a," "the," etc., including the plural forms, should be broadly understood as "a kind" or "a class" rather than limited to the meaning of "an." Furthermore, the term "the" should be understood to include both the singular and plural forms, unless the context explicitly indicates otherwise. Additionally, the term "according to" should be understood as "at least partially based on…," and the term "based on" should be understood as "at least partially based on…," unless the context explicitly indicates otherwise.

[0031] Features described and / or illustrated for one embodiment may be used in the same or similar manner in one or more other embodiments, combined with features in other embodiments, or substituted for features in other embodiments. The term "comprising / including" as used herein means the presence of a feature, integral, step, or component, but does not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integrals, steps, or components.

[0032] Some embodiments of this application provide a method for generating information.

[0033] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a method for generating information according to some embodiments of this application. As shown in Figure 1, the method for generating information includes:

[0034] Operation 101: Receive the electronic data of the first medical examination report;

[0035] Operation 102: Analyze the contents of the first medical examination report based on the electronic data; and

[0036] Operation 103: Generate report information based on the results of the analysis. This report information is used to generate a second medical examination report.

[0037] In this application, the report information generated by the above-described method for generating information can be used to generate a second medical examination report. The report information may include at least one of the following: the examination protocol for the medical examination involved in the second medical examination report; and the examination report template used to generate the second medical examination report.

[0038] The type of medical examination in the second medical examination report is the same as that in the first medical examination report; for example, both are ultrasound examinations of a certain part of the human body (e.g., the thyroid gland).

[0039] According to an embodiment of this application, report information is generated based on the analysis results of the first medical examination report, which is used to generate a second medical examination report. As a result, physicians do not need to manually input medical examination report templates or examination protocols, thus improving work efficiency.

[0040] Furthermore, in this application, physicians can edit the generated medical examination report templates and / or examination protocols as needed, thereby increasing flexibility.

[0041] In this application, the method for generating information shown in Figure 1 can be applied to medical examination equipment, which can be a medical imaging device, such as an ultrasound imaging device, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) device, a computed tomography (CT) imaging device, etc. Alternatively, the medical examination equipment can be other types, such as an electrocardiogram (ECG) examination device.

[0042] The first medical examination report can be a report of a medical imaging examination, such as ultrasound imaging, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), or computed tomography (CT) imaging. Alternatively, the first medical examination report can also be other types of medical examination reports, such as an electrocardiogram (ECG) report.

[0043] In some embodiments of operation 101, the first medical examination report may be a paper document. Therefore, the electronic data of the first medical examination report may include image data obtained by scanning or photographing the paper report. The image data may be in formats such as TIFF (Tagged Image File Format) or JPEG (Joint Image Experts Group), or portable document formats such as PDF or Word. In some examples, a scanning instrument or camera scans or photographs the paper report to obtain image data, and transmits this image data to the medical examination device via wired or wireless means. In other examples, the image data of the first medical examination report is stored in a storage device (e.g., a portable hard drive or USB flash drive), which is connected to the medical examination device to input the image data into the device.

[0044] In other embodiments of operation 101, the first medical examination report may be an electronic file, which may be editable or non-editable. The electronic data of the electronic file may be document data, in a format such as portable file format (PDF) or Word. In other examples, the electronic data of the first medical examination report is stored in a storage device (e.g., a portable hard drive or USB flash drive), which is connected to the medical examination device to input image data into the medical examination device.

[0045] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a first medical examination report according to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 2, the information areas 20 of the first medical examination report 2 have been filled with corresponding content. The format of the content (i.e., the content format) can be at least one of text, image, table, and graph. Among them, text can include letters, Chinese characters, or characters from other languages ​​(e.g., Japanese, Korean, etc.), numbers, etc.; images can be medical images, such as ultrasound images, etc.; tables can include one or more rows (columns) of cells, and each cell can be filled with characters or numbers, etc.; graphs are, for example, line graphs, bar graphs, or pie charts, etc.

[0046] The content in each information area 20 of the first medical examination report 2 may be content written by a physician with a pen, or content entered through an input device such as a keyboard, or content generated by medical examination equipment (e.g., at least one of medical images, tables, and charts generated by medical examination equipment).

[0047] As shown in Figure 2, the first medical examination report 2 includes multiple information areas 20. For example, these multiple information areas 20 can be labeled as 2001 to 2008. The content of each information area 20 is as follows:

[0048] Information area 2001, for example, may include the name of the medical institution, the logo of the medical institution, and the contact information of the medical institution (e.g., at least one of the following: address, telephone number, email address, website, QR code, and official account).

[0049] Information area 2002, for example, may include at least one of the following information: the name, age, gender, examination number, attending physician, examination registration time, and the time when the medical examination report was generated;

[0050] Information area 2003, for example, may include at least one of the following: the name of the examination type (e.g., color Doppler), the examination site, and the measurement results obtained during the examination (e.g., measurement results obtained by measuring medical images obtained during a medical examination), wherein the measurement results may be in tabular form;

[0051] Information area 2004, for example, may include an objective description of the inspection results;

[0052] Information area 2005, for example, may include physiological parameters of the subject obtained during the examination, such as the resistance index (RI) and pulsatility index (RI) of blood flow in the middle cerebral artery, wherein each physiological parameter is listed in tabular form;

[0053] Information area 2006, for example, may include medical images obtained during a medical examination, which may include at least one of medical images (e.g., ultrasound images), waveforms, curves, and charts (e.g., bar charts);

[0054] Information area 2007, for example, may include the diagnostic conclusion of the physician who performed the medical examination, etc.;

[0055] Information area 2008, for example, may include the signature of the physician and / or other personnel who performed the medical examination.

[0056] Figure 2 shows an example of each information area 20 of the first medical examination report 2. This application is not limited to this, and each information area 20 of the first medical examination report 2 may also have other content.

[0057] In operation 102, the content of the first medical examination report is analyzed based on the electronic data received in operation 101. In some examples, artificial intelligence models or other types of models can be used to analyze the electronic data to obtain the analysis results. For example, an artificial intelligence model can be used to perform optical character recognition (OCR) on at least one information area 20 in the first medical examination report 2 to identify the text in the information area 20, and then determine the type of the first medical examination in the first medical examination report 2 based on the identified text.

[0058] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a method for analyzing the content of a first medical examination report. This method is an example of how to implement operation 102. As shown in Figure 3, the method for analyzing the content of a first medical examination report includes:

[0059] Operation 301: Identify the content format and layout information of multiple information areas in the first medical examination report;

[0060] Operation 302: Recognize text information in at least one information area; and

[0061] Operation 303: Based on the recognition results of the content format information, layout information and text information, associate each information area in the first medical examination report with the examination report elements.

[0062] Operation 301 can also be referred to as structure analysis. In some embodiments of operation 301, artificial intelligence (AI) models can be used to identify the content format and layout information of each information area 20 in the first medical examination report 2.

[0063] The content format information refers to, for example, the content of each information area 20 in the first medical examination report 2 being at least one of text, image, table, and graph, or other formats.

[0064] The layout information can be the position and size of each information area 20 in the first medical examination report 2. For example, the lower left corner vertex of the first medical examination report 2 can be used as the origin O, and the width (W) direction and height (H) direction of the first medical examination report 2 can be used as the directions of two orthogonal coordinate axes to set up a coordinate system. The position of the geometric center point of each information area 20 or the position of a predetermined vertex (for example, if the information area 20 is a rectangle, the upper left corner vertex of the rectangle can be used as the predetermined vertex) can be used as the position of the information area 20. Furthermore, the size of the information area 20 can be the size of the information area 20 in the width (W) direction and the size in the height (H) direction.

[0065] Furthermore, this application is not limited to this; operation 301 may also employ other models besides the artificial intelligence model, or combine the artificial intelligence model with other models, etc.

[0066] In operation 302, an artificial intelligence model or other type of model can be used to perform optical character recognition (OCR) on the information area 20 containing text, thereby recognizing the text information in the information area 20. The type of the information area 20 can be determined through the text in the information area 20.

[0067] In operation 303, based on the recognition results of operations 301 and 302 (e.g., the recognition results of the content format information, layout information and text information of each information area 20 in the first medical examination report 2), each information area 20 in the first medical examination report 2 can be associated with the examination report elements.

[0068] Examination report elements are components of an examination report template. Examination report elements may include, for example, at least one of the following: medical institution information, patient information, examination type, examination conclusion, examination parameters, medical examination images, impression, and signature. Examination report elements may be stored in the medical examination equipment or be newly generated examination report elements.

[0069] In some embodiments of operation 303, an artificial intelligence model or other models can be used to associate each information region 20 in the first medical examination report 2 with existing examination report elements (e.g., existing examination report elements refer to examination report elements stored in the medical examination device). For example, the recognition results of each information region 20 of the first medical examination report 2 (e.g., recognition results of content format information, layout information, and text information) are input into the artificial intelligence model, which outputs the correspondence between each information region 20 and the examination report elements. For example, this correspondence can be:

[0070] The examination report element corresponding to information area 2001 is "medical institution information";

[0071] The inspection report element corresponding to information area 2002 is "Information on the Object to be Inspected";

[0072] The inspection report element corresponding to information area 2003 is "Inspection Type";

[0073] The inspection report element corresponding to information area 2004 is "Inspection Conclusion";

[0074] The inspection report element corresponding to information area 2005 is "inspection parameters";

[0075] The examination report element corresponding to information area 2006 is "medical examination image";

[0076] The inspection report element corresponding to information area 2007 is "Impression";

[0077] The inspection report element corresponding to information area 2008 is "signature".

[0078] Furthermore, in operation 303, if a certain information area 20 in the first medical examination report 2 cannot be associated with an existing examination report element, a new examination report element can be generated for that information area 20, and the information area 20 can be associated with the generated new examination report element. Additionally, the generated new examination report element can be stored in the medical examination device, thereby enriching the types of examination report elements stored in the medical examination device.

[0079] In operation 103, an examination report template can be generated as the report information based on the association results between each information area 20 in the first medical examination report 2 obtained in operation 303 and the examination report elements. For example, based on the position information, size information, and text information of each information area 20 in the first medical examination report 2, the position, size, and text of the corresponding area in the examination report template are set, and the attributes of the corresponding area in the examination report template are set based on the examination report elements associated with the information area 20. The attributes of the corresponding area can be at least one of the following examples:

[0080] The text and / or tables in this area are editable; the graphics and / or text in this area are fixed and cannot be edited; it receives medical images generated by medical examination equipment and displays the medical images in this area.

[0081] Furthermore, during the process of generating the examination report template in operation 103, the information in at least one information area 20 of the first medical examination report 2 can be set to predetermined information, that is, the information in at least one information area 20 of the first medical examination report 2 can be modified or replaced with predetermined information.

[0082] For example, the medical institution information in the information area 2001 of the first medical examination report 2 is the information of medical institution A, while the examination report element associated with information area 2001 is set to have the information of medical institution B. Therefore, in the generated examination report template, the area corresponding to information area 2001 contains the information of medical institution B.

[0083] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the examination report template generated by operation 103. As shown in Figure 4, the examination report template 4 can have multiple template areas 40, such as template areas 4001 to 4008. The position and size of each template area 4001 to 4008 can correspond to the information areas 2001 to 2008 in the first medical examination report 2 in Figure 2. The attributes of each template area 4001 to 4008 can be set based on the attributes of the corresponding examination report element.

[0084] In some embodiments of this application, the examination report template 4 generated by operation 103 can be stored in a medical examination device. For example, the examination report template 4 generated by operation 103 can be in Hypertext Markup Language (HTML) format, Extensible Markup Language (XML) format, or other formats.

[0085] Examination report template 4 can be used to generate a second medical examination report. For example, after examination using medical examination equipment, a physician can use examination report template 4 to generate a medical examination report (i.e., a second medical examination report).

[0086] In some embodiments of this application, the report information generated by operation 103 is an examination report template. Therefore, using the method of this application, physicians can quickly generate an examination report template 4 using a paper or electronic version of the first medical examination report 2. Compared to drawing templates using an editor, the method of this application is more efficient. Furthermore, the position, size, and type of each template area 40 of the examination report template 4 generated by the method of this application are identical to information areas 2001-2008 in the first medical examination report 2, thus improving the accuracy of the examination report template 4. According to embodiments of this application, when the first medical examination report 2 is, for example, a medical examination report that meets the latest requirements of medical examination equipment or examination protocols, the method of this application allows physicians to quickly and accurately generate an examination report template 4 corresponding to the first medical examination report 2, thereby updating the examination report template in a timely manner.

[0087] In other embodiments of this application, the report information generated by operation 103 may include the examination protocol for the medical examination involved in the second medical examination report. For example, the report information generated by operation 103 may include only the examination protocol, or both the examination protocol and the examination report template, or only the examination report template.

[0088] In this application, the examination protocol can also be referred to as an examination plan. The examination protocol may include the type of examination, the examination site (e.g., a specific body part or organ), the examination sequence, and the parameters to be measured during the examination. Specifically, when a medical examination involves scanning (e.g., ultrasound scan, X-ray scan, magnetic resonance imaging scan), the examination protocol can be referred to as a CAN protocol.

[0089] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a generation and inspection protocol according to an embodiment of this application, as an example of operation 103. As shown in Figure 5, the method for generating and inspection protocols may include:

[0090] Operation 501: Based on the recognition results of text information in at least one information area of ​​the first medical examination report, determine the type of the first medical examination in the first medical examination report, wherein the type of the first medical examination is the same as the type of medical examination involved in the second medical examination report; and

[0091] Operation 502: Generate an examination protocol based on the type of the first medical examination.

[0092] In this application, the type of medical examination in the medical examination report or the type of medical examination involved in the medical examination report refers to: the physician performing that type of medical examination on the subject of the examination, thereby generating the medical examination report.

[0093] In some embodiments of operation 501, the type of the first medical examination in the first medical examination report 2 can be determined based on the recognition results of the text information in at least one information area 20 in the first medical examination report 2.

[0094] For example, based on the recognition results of the text information in the information area 2003 of Figure 2 (e.g., based on the recognition results of operation 302), at least one of the following information can be determined: the name of the examination type, the examination site, and the measurement results obtained during the examination. Furthermore, based on the correspondence between the recognition results of the text information and the types of medical examinations (e.g., based on a lookup table or using an artificial intelligence model), the type of the first medical examination involved in the first medical examination report 2 is determined, and the type of the first medical examination is the same as the type of medical examination designed in the second medical examination report.

[0095] It should be noted that, in some cases, when the report information generated by operation 103 only includes the inspection protocol, operation 102 may only include operation 302, without operations 301 and 303. That is, in operation 102, operation 302 is used to identify the text information in the information area, and the identification result of the text information is used in operation 103 to generate the inspection protocol.

[0096] In operation 502, an examination protocol is generated based on the type of the first medical examination determined in operation 501. For example, a correspondence between the types of medical examinations and examination protocols is stored in the medical examination equipment (e.g., the correspondence is in the form of a lookup table), thereby determining the examination protocol corresponding to the type of the first medical examination based on the correspondence.

[0097] The examination protocol generated by operation 502 can be a configuration file that lists at least one of the examination modes (e.g., scan modes), examination planes (e.g., scan planes), and measurement parameters required for the medical examination (e.g., scanning). Furthermore, the configuration file can also set the predetermined sequence of examination steps (e.g., the sequence of scanning steps), etc.

[0098] The examination procedures, modes, examination planes, and measurement parameters defined in the examination protocol can be displayed on the user interface (UI) to guide physicians in performing medical examinations according to the protocol. This reduces the burden on physicians and makes the medical examination process more reliable.

[0099] As shown in Figure 1, the method for generating information also includes:

[0100] Operation 104: Generate display control information according to the inspection protocol. This display control information is used to control the display to show a user interface that reflects the inspection protocol.

[0101] In some embodiments of operation 104, the user interface may include first icons. These first icons represent various examination steps in the examination protocol. For example, the user interface may display multiple first icons, each corresponding to one examination step, and the shapes of the first icons may be the same or different. Thus, the physician can easily determine the number of examination steps in the examination protocol by observing the number of first icons.

[0102] In some examples, the display state of the first icon can correspond to the completion state of the inspection step. The display state of the first icon may include at least one of the following: the icon's color, grayscale, brightness, transparency, and fill texture; and / or, the first icon's blinking frequency; and / or, the first icon's size. The completion state of the inspection step may include, for example, that the inspection step has not yet been performed, that the inspection step is in progress, that the inspection step has been completed, or that the inspection step has failed.

[0103] For example, when a certain inspection step has not yet been performed, the first icon corresponding to that inspection step has a first display state; when the inspection step is in progress, the first icon corresponding to that inspection step has a second display state; and when a certain inspection step is completed, the first icon corresponding to that inspection step has a third display state. The first display state, the second display state, and the third display state may differ in at least one of the following: the color of the first icon, the grayscale of the first icon, the brightness of the first icon, the transparency of the first icon, the texture of the fill of the first icon, the blinking frequency of the first icon, and the size of the first icon.

[0104] Therefore, the display status of the first icon can indicate the completion status of the corresponding examination step. By observing the display status of the first icon, the physician can easily determine the completion status of each examination step in the examination protocol.

[0105] In some embodiments of operation 104, the user interface may also include at least one of the following:

[0106] A schematic diagram of the object of examination for at least one examination step, for example, if the object of examination for the examination step is a cross-section of the thyroid gland, the schematic diagram of the cross-section of the thyroid gland may be displayed near the first icon of the examination step (e.g., below the first icon);

[0107] Medical images obtained from at least one examination step, such as an ultrasound scan of a cross-section of the thyroid gland, can be displayed on a user interface as ultrasound images obtained from the ultrasound scan of a cross-section of the thyroid gland.

[0108] The medical examination device includes an operation menu for at least one examination step. This menu may include a list of options corresponding to operations such as measurement, target area identification, or target area contour drawing. The physician operates on the options in the operation menu, and the medical examination device performs corresponding processing. The results of this processing are displayed on the user interface. For example, if the examination step is measuring the size of a nodule, the operation menu for that examination step is displayed near (e.g., below) a first icon. The option list of this operation menu may include the following options: length (L), height (H), width (W), automatic contour drawing on the height and length plane (Auto Contour(H*L)), and automatic contour drawing on the height and width plane (Auto Contour(H*W)). When the physician selects an option, the medical examination device performs corresponding processing, and the results are displayed on the user interface.

[0109] In addition, the user interface may display other information, and this application does not impose any restrictions.

[0110] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of the user interface generated by operation 104. Figure 6 illustrates the use of ultrasound equipment to scan the thyroid gland of the subject, that is, the first type of medical examination is an ultrasound scan of the thyroid gland of the subject.

[0111] As shown in Figure 6, the user interface 600 may include a plurality of first icons 61, each with a shape that may be the same or different. The plurality of first icons 61 are arranged in a row along the horizontal direction of the user interface 600. Each of the plurality of first icons 61 represents a corresponding examination step in the examination protocol, and the name of that examination step is displayed near each first icon 61 (e.g., below it). For example, the names of the examination steps may be: Thyroid cross-sectional scan, Nodule size measurement, Nodule area measurement, Thyroid longitudinal cross-sectional scan, Nodule size measurement, Nodule area measurement, Nodule TI-RADS Assessment, Next nodule. In addition, the examination protocol may also include other examination steps not shown in the figure.

[0112] As shown in Figure 6, when a certain inspection step has not yet been performed, the first icon 61 corresponding to that inspection step has a first display state; when the inspection step is in progress, the first icon 61 corresponding to that inspection step has a second display state; and when a certain inspection step is completed, the first icon 61 corresponding to that inspection step has a third display state. The first display state, the second display state, and the third display state may differ in at least one of the following: the color of the first icon 61, the grayscale of the first icon 61, the brightness of the first icon 61, the transparency of the first icon 61, the texture of the fill of the first icon 61, the blinking frequency of the first icon 61, and the size of the first icon 61.

[0113] For example, in the first display state, the first icon 61 is orange; in the second display state, the first icon 61 is yellow; and in the third display state, the first icon 61 is green.

[0114] After one examination step is completed, the display state of the first icon 61 corresponding to that examination step switches from the second display state to the third display state. Furthermore, the display state of the first icon 61 corresponding to the next examination step switches from the first display state to the second display state. Additionally, if the next examination step has an operation menu 64, the operation menu 64 is activated (i.e., options in the operation menu 64 can be selected). Thus, by changing the display state of the first icon 61, the physician is guided to perform medical examinations according to the examination sequence set in the examination protocol.

[0115] As shown in Figure 6, the user interface 600 may also include an examination object diagram 62 for at least one examination step. For example, for the examination step of thyroid cross-section scanning, the examination object is a cross-section of the thyroid gland, and an examination object diagram 62 of the thyroid cross-section can be displayed near the first icon 61 of this examination step (e.g., below the first icon 61). As another example, for the examination step of thyroid longitudinal section scanning, the examination object is a longitudinal section of the thyroid gland, and an examination object diagram 62 of the thyroid longitudinal section can be displayed near the first icon 61 of this examination step (e.g., below the first icon 61).

[0116] As shown in Figure 6, the user interface 600 may also include a medical image 63 obtained from at least one examination step. For example, the examination step is to measure the size of a nodule in a longitudinal section of the thyroid gland. The user interface 600 may display an ultrasound image obtained from an ultrasound scan of a transverse section of the thyroid gland as a medical image 63, and the medical image 63 may display a line segment 1 for representing the length (L) dimension of the nodule and a line segment 2 for representing the height (H) dimension of the nodule.

[0117] As shown in Figure 6, the user interface 600 may also include an operation menu 64 for at least one examination step. The operation menu may include an option list corresponding to operations such as measurement, target area identification, or target area contour drawing. By operating the options in the operation menu, the medical examination device can perform the corresponding processing, and the processing results can be displayed on the user interface.

[0118] For example, this examination step measures the size of a nodule in a longitudinal section of the thyroid gland. Near the first icon 61 corresponding to this examination step (e.g., below the first icon), an operation menu 64 is displayed. The option list of the operation menu 64 may include the following options: length (L), height (H), width (W), automatic contour drawing on the height and length plane (Auto Contour(H*L)), and automatic contour drawing on the height and width plane (Auto Contour(H*W)). When a physician selects an option, the medical examination device can perform corresponding processing, and the result can be displayed on the user interface 600. For example, if the physician selects the length (L) option, they can use a mouse or other tools to mark a line segment 1 on the medical image 63 to represent the nodule's length (L) dimension, and the size of the nodule corresponding to line segment 1 is displayed near the medical image 63 (e.g., in list 65).

[0119] Some embodiments of this application also provide a medical device.

[0120] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of a medical device according to an embodiment of this application.

[0121] As shown in Figure 7, the medical device 700 includes:

[0122] Receiving unit 701 receives electronic data from the first medical examination report; and

[0123] The processing unit 702 executes the method for generating information as shown in FIG1.

[0124] In some embodiments, the processing unit 702 analyzes the content of the first medical examination report based on the electronic data, and generates report information based on the analysis results, the report information being used to generate a second medical examination report.

[0125] In some embodiments, the report information includes the examination protocol for the medical examination involved in the second medical examination report. It is possible to generate report information based on the results of the analysis, including:

[0126] Based on the recognition results of text information in at least one information area of ​​the first medical examination report, the type of the first medical examination in the first medical examination report is determined, wherein the type of the first medical examination is the same as the type of medical examination involved in the second medical examination report; and

[0127] The examination protocol is generated based on the type of the first medical examination.

[0128] In some embodiments, the processing unit 702 may also generate display control information according to the inspection protocol, the display control information being used to control the display to show a user interface reflecting the inspection protocol.

[0129] In some examples, the user interface includes a first icon representing each inspection step in the inspection protocol, the display state of the first icon corresponding to the completion state of the inspection step.

[0130] In some examples, the user interface also includes at least one of the following:

[0131] A schematic diagram of the object to be inspected in at least one inspection step;

[0132] Medical images obtained by at least one of the examination steps; and

[0133] At least one of the operation menus for the aforementioned inspection steps.

[0134] In some embodiments, the report information further includes an examination report template for generating the second medical examination report. The analysis of the content of the first medical examination report based on the electronic data includes:

[0135] Identify the content format and layout information of multiple information areas in the first medical examination report;

[0136] Identify textual information in at least one of the information areas; and

[0137] Based on the recognition results of the content format information, the layout information, and the text information, each information area in the first medical examination report is associated with an examination report element.

[0138] In some examples, an examination report element is generated for at least one of the information areas in the first medical examination report, and the information area is associated with the generated examination report element.

[0139] In some examples, report information is generated based on the results of the analysis, including:

[0140] Based on the associated results, the inspection report template is generated.

[0141] In some examples, in the examination report template, information in at least one of the information areas of the first medical examination report is set to predetermined information.

[0142] For further explanation of the various units in the medical device 700, please refer to the detailed description of the corresponding operation in Figure 1.

[0143] It is understood that the medical device 700 may include different types, such as a medical imaging system, which may be an ultrasound imaging system, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) system, a computed tomography (CT) imaging system, etc. The following description uses an ultrasound imaging system as an example.

[0144] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of an ultrasound imaging system according to an embodiment of this application. As shown in Figure 8, the ultrasound imaging system 200 can be configured to provide ultrasound imaging, and therefore may include suitable circuitry, interfaces, logic, and / or code for performing and / or supporting ultrasound imaging-related functions.

[0145] The ultrasound imaging system 200 includes, for example, a transmitter 202, an ultrasound probe 204, a transmit beamformer 210, a receiver 218, a receive beamformer 220, an RF processor 224, an RF / IQ buffer 226, a receiving unit (shown as an example of a user input device 230 in the figure), a signal processor 240 (corresponding to the aforementioned processing unit 702), an image buffer 250, a display system 260 (display), and a file 270.

[0146] Transmitter 202 may include suitable circuitry, interfaces, logic, and / or code operable to drive ultrasound probe 204. Ultrasound probe 204 may include a two-dimensional (2D) piezoelectric element array. Ultrasound probe 204 may include a set of transmitting transducer elements 206 and a set of receiving transducer elements 208 that generally constitute the same components. In some embodiments, ultrasound probe 204 is operable to acquire ultrasound image data covering at least a substantial portion of an anatomical structure, such as the heart or any suitable anatomical structure.

[0147] The transmitting beamformer 210 may include suitable circuitry, interfaces, logic, and / or code operable to control the transmitter 202, which drives the set of transmitting transducer elements 206 via the transmitting sub-aperture beamformer 214 to transmit ultrasonic signals to a region of interest (e.g., a person, animal, underground cavity, physical structure, etc.). The transmitted ultrasonic signals may be backscattered from structures (such as blood cells or tissue) within the object of interest to generate echoes. The echoes are received by the receiving transducer element 208.

[0148] The set of receiving transducer elements 208 in the ultrasonic probe 204 is operable to convert the received echo into an analog signal, perform sub-aperture beamforming via the receiving sub-aperture beamformer 216, and then transmit it to the receiver 218. The receiver 218 may include suitable circuitry, interfaces, logic, and / or code operable to receive the signal from the receiving sub-aperture beamformer 216. The analog signal can be transmitted to one or more of a plurality of A / D converters 222.

[0149] Multiple A / D converters 222 may include suitable circuitry, interfaces, logic, and / or code operable to convert analog signals from receiver 218 into corresponding digital signals. Multiple A / D converters 222 are disposed between receiver 218 and RF processor 224. However, this application is not limited in this respect. Therefore, in some embodiments, multiple A / D converters 222 may be integrated within receiver 218.

[0150] RF processor 224 may include suitable circuitry, interfaces, logic, and / or code operable to demodulate digital signals output from a plurality of A / D converters 222. According to one embodiment, RF processor 224 may include a demodulator (not shown) operable to demodulate digital signals to form I / Q data pairs representing corresponding echo signals. The RF or I / Q signal data can then be transmitted to RF / IQ buffer 226. RF / IQ buffer 226 may include suitable circuitry, interfaces, logic, and / or code operable to provide temporary storage of the RF or I / Q signal data generated by RF processor 224.

[0151] The receiver beamformer 220 may include suitable circuitry, interfaces, logic, and / or code operable to perform digital beamforming processing, such as summing a delayed channel signal received from the RF processor 224 via the RF / IQ buffer 226 and outputting a beam sum signal. The resulting processed information may be a beam sum signal output from the receiver beamformer 220 and transmitted to the signal processor 240. According to some embodiments, the receiver 218, multiple A / D converters 222, the RF processor 224, and the beamformer 220 may be integrated into a single beamformer, which may be digital. In various embodiments, the ultrasound imaging system 200 includes multiple receiver beamformers 220.

[0152] In the embodiment of Figure 8, the receiving unit is represented by a user input device 230. The user input device 230 can be used to input patient data, scan parameters, settings, select protocols and / or templates, interact with an artificial intelligence segmentation processor to select tracking targets, etc. In an exemplary embodiment, the user input device 230 is operable to configure, manage, and / or control the operation of one or more components and / or modules in the ultrasound imaging system 200. In this regard, the user input device 230 is operable to configure, manage, and / or control the operation of the transmitter 202, ultrasound probe 204, transmit beamformer 210, receiver 218, receive beamformer 220, RF processor 224, RF / IQ buffer 226, user input device 230, signal processor 240, image buffer 250, display system 260, and / or file 270.

[0153] For example, user input device 230 may include buttons, rotary encoders, touchscreens, motion tracking, voice recognition, mouse devices, keyboards, trackballs, cameras, data receiving ports (e.g., USB interfaces), and / or any other devices capable of receiving user commands. In some embodiments, for example, one or more user input devices in user input device 230 may be integrated into other components (such as display system 260 or ultrasound probe 204). As an example, user input device 230 may include a touchscreen display. As another example, user input device 230 may include accelerometers, gyroscopes, and / or magnetometers attached to and / or integrated with probe 204 to provide posture motion recognition of probe 204, such as identifying one or more probe compressions against the patient's body, predefined probe movement or tilting operations, etc. Additionally and / or alternatively, user input device 230 may include image analysis processing to identify probe posture by analyzing acquired image data.

[0154] In other embodiments of the ultrasound imaging system 200, the receiving unit may be at least one of a scanning instrument, a camera, and a data receiving port. For example, the receiving unit may be a scanning instrument or camera that scans or photographs a paper-based first medical examination report to obtain image data. This image data is transmitted to the signal processor 240 of the ultrasound imaging system 200 via a wired link (e.g., a data cable) or a wireless link (e.g., a wireless communication link such as Bluetooth or Wi-Fi). The image data may be in a format such as a TIFF image file format or a Joint Image Experts Group (JPEG) image format, or a portable file format (PDF) or a Word document format. Alternatively, the receiving unit may be a data receiving port of the ultrasound imaging system 200. This data receiving port may be a USB interface or a Type-C interface, allowing an external storage device (e.g., a portable hard drive or USB flash drive) to transmit the stored electronic data of the first medical examination report to the ultrasound imaging system 200 through this data receiving port.

[0155] Signal processor 240 may include suitable circuitry, interfaces, logic, and / or code operable to process ultrasound scan data (i.e., summed IQ signals) to generate an ultrasound image for presentation on display system 260. Signal processor 240 is operable to perform one or more processing operations based on multiple selectable ultrasound modalities on the acquired ultrasound scan data. In exemplary embodiments, signal processor 240 is operable to perform display processing and / or control processing, etc. Acquired ultrasound scan data can be processed in real time during a scanning session as echo signals are received. Additionally or alternatively, ultrasound scan data may be temporarily stored in RF / IQ buffer 226 during a scanning session and processed in a less real-time manner in online or offline operations. In various embodiments, processed image data may be presented at display system 260 and / or stored at archive 270. Archive 270 may be a local archive, picture archiving and communication system (PACS), or any suitable device for storing images and related information.

[0156] Signal processor 240 may be one or more central processing units, microprocessors, microcontrollers, etc. For example, signal processor 240 may be an integrated component or may be distributed across various locations. Signal processor 240 may be configured to receive input information from user input device 230 and / or file 270, generate output that can be displayed by display system 260, and manipulate the output in response to input information from user input device 230, etc. Signal processor 240 may be capable of performing, for example, any of one or more methods and / or instruction sets discussed herein according to various embodiments.

[0157] In some embodiments of the ultrasound imaging system 200, the signal processor 240 can be used to implement the function of the processing unit 702 in FIG7, to execute the information generation method described in the foregoing embodiments of this application. For example, the signal processor 240 analyzes the content of a first medical examination report received by the receiving unit, and generates report information for generating a second medical examination report based on the analysis results. This report information may include at least one of an examination protocol and an examination report template. For a detailed description of the information generation method, please refer to the relevant descriptions in the foregoing embodiments.

[0158] The ultrasound imaging system 200 is operable to continuously acquire ultrasound scan data at a frame rate suitable for the imaging situation under consideration. Typical frame rates are in the range of 20 to 220, but can be lower or higher. The acquired ultrasound scan data can be displayed in real time on the display system 260 at the same, slower, or faster frame rate. An image buffer 250 is included for storing frames of acquired ultrasound scan data that are not scheduled for immediate display. Preferably, the image buffer 250 has sufficient capacity to store frames of ultrasound scan data for at least several minutes. The frames of ultrasound scan data are stored in a manner that allows for easy retrieval based on their acquisition order or time. The image buffer 250 can be embodied in any known data storage medium.

[0159] In some implementations, the signal processor 240 may be configured to execute or otherwise control at least some of the functions performed based on user instructions via user input device 230. As an example, the user may provide voice commands, probe orientation, button presses, etc., to issue specific instructions, such as controlling various aspects of automatic strain measurement and strain ratio calculation, and / or providing or otherwise specifying various parameters or settings associated therewith, as described in more detail below.

[0160] In operation, the ultrasound imaging system 200 can be used to generate ultrasound images, including two-dimensional (2D), three-dimensional (3D), and / or four-dimensional (4D) images. In this regard, the ultrasound imaging system 200 is operable to continuously acquire ultrasound scan data at a specific frame rate, which may be applicable to the imaging situation discussed. For example, the frame rate may be in the range of 20-70, or even lower or higher. The acquired ultrasound scan data may be displayed on the display system 260 at the same, slower, or faster frame rate. An image buffer 250 is included for storing frames of acquired ultrasound scan data that are not scheduled for immediate display. Preferably, the image buffer 250 has sufficient capacity to store frames of ultrasound scan data for at least a few seconds. The frames of ultrasound scan data are stored in a manner that facilitates retrieval based on their acquisition order or time. The image buffer 250 may be embodied in any known data storage medium.

[0161] In some cases, the ultrasound imaging system 200 can be configured to support grayscale and color-based operations. For example, the signal processor 240 can be operated to perform grayscale B-model processing and / or color processing. Grayscale B-model processing may include processing B-model RF signal data or IQ data pairs. For example, grayscale B-model processing can enable computational efficiency (I0...) 2 +Q 2 ) 1 / 2 An envelope capable of beamforming the received signal can be formed. The envelope may undergo additional B-model processing, such as logarithmic compression, to form display data. The display data can be converted to XY format for video display. Scan-converted frames can be mapped to grayscale for display. B-model frames are provided to image buffer 250 and / or display system 260. Color processing may include processing color-based RF signal data or IQ data pairs to form frames that overlay the B-model frames provided to image buffer 250 and / or display system 260. Grayscale and / or color processing may be adaptively adjusted based on user input (e.g., selection from user input device 230), for example, to enhance grayscale and / or color in specific areas.

[0162] This application also provides a computer-readable program, wherein when the program is executed, the program causes a computer to perform the information generation method described in any of the foregoing embodiments in a medical imaging system.

[0163] This application also provides a storage medium storing a computer-readable program, wherein the computer-readable program causes a computer to perform the information generation method described in any of the foregoing embodiments in a medical imaging system.

[0164] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing a computer program having at least one code segment that can be executed by a machine (e.g., a computer) to cause the machine to perform the information generation method described in any of the foregoing embodiments.

[0165] The above embodiments are merely illustrative examples of embodiments of this application, but this application is not limited thereto, and appropriate modifications can be made based on the above embodiments. For example, the above embodiments can be used alone, or one or more of the above embodiments can be combined.

[0166] The present application has been described above with reference to specific embodiments. However, those skilled in the art should understand that these descriptions are exemplary and not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present application. Those skilled in the art can make various modifications and variations to the present application based on its spirit and principles, and these modifications and variations are also within the scope of the present application.

[0167] Preferred embodiments of this application have been described above with reference to the accompanying drawings. Many features and advantages of these embodiments are apparent from this detailed description, and therefore the appended claims are intended to cover all such features and advantages of these embodiments that fall within their true spirit and scope. Furthermore, since many modifications and variations will readily occur to those skilled in the art, the embodiments of this application are not intended to be limited to the precise structures and operations illustrated and described, but rather to encompass all suitable modifications, variations, and equivalents falling within their scope.

Claims

1. A method for generating information, characterized in that, The method includes: receiving electronic data of a first medical examination report; analyzing the content of the first medical examination report based on the electronic data; and generating report information based on the analysis results, the report information being used to generate a second medical examination report.

2. The method as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The report information includes the examination protocol for the medical examinations involved in the second medical examination report.

3. The method as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The process of generating report information based on the analysis results includes: determining the type of a first medical examination in the first medical examination report based on the recognition results of text information in at least one information area of ​​the first medical examination report, wherein the type of the first medical examination is the same as the type of medical examination involved in the second medical examination report; and generating the examination protocol based on the type of the first medical examination.

4. The method as described in claim 3, characterized in that, The method further includes: generating display control information according to the inspection protocol, the display control information being used to control the display to show a user interface reflecting the inspection protocol.

5. The method as described in claim 4, characterized in that, The user interface includes a first icon for representing each inspection step in the inspection protocol, wherein the display state of the first icon corresponds to the completion state of the inspection step.

6. The method as described in claim 5, characterized in that, The user interface also includes at least one of the following: a schematic diagram of the object to be examined in at least one examination step; a medical image obtained in at least one of the examination steps; and an operation menu for at least one of the examination steps.

7. The method as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The report information also includes an examination report template for generating the second medical examination report.

8. The method as described in claim 7, characterized in that, Based on the electronic data, the content of the first medical examination report is analyzed, including: identifying the content format information and layout information of multiple information areas in the first medical examination report; identifying text information in at least one of the information areas; and associating each of the information areas in the first medical examination report with examination report elements based on the identification results of the content format information, the layout information and the text information.

9. The method as described in claim 8, characterized in that, Generate an examination report element for at least one of the information areas in the first medical examination report, and associate the information area with the generated examination report element.

10. The method as described in claim 8, characterized in that, The report information is generated based on the results of the analysis, including: generating the inspection report template based on the associated results.

11. The method as described in claim 10, characterized in that, In the examination report template, information in at least one of the information areas of the first medical examination report is set to predetermined information.

12. A medical device, characterized in that, The medical device includes: a receiving unit that receives electronic data of a first medical examination report; and a processing unit that performs the method according to any one of claims 1-11.

13. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium for storing a computer program, which, when executed by a computer, causes the computer to perform the method described in any one of claims 1-11.

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