Brain Shrinkage Ratio Calculation for Multi-Disease MRI Diagnosis

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Solution Overview

Problem

Conventional diagnosis support systems are unable to effectively compare and provide valid diagnostic support information when multiple brain diseases are simultaneously assumed, lacking the capability to quantify and visually display the shrinkage of brain tissue related to different diseases.

Innovation Solution

A diagnosis support device and method that identifies brain sites related to multiple diseases, calculates a shrinkage score, and displays the shrinkage distribution on brain images, allowing for quantitative comparison of shrinkage ratios between diseases, using anatomical standardization and statistical analysis to differentiate between conditions like Alzheimer dementia and dementia with Lewy bodies.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If conventional diagnosis support systems evaluate shrinkage for a specific disease using MRI images, then diagnostic support for that specific disease is improved, but the capability to compare and provide diagnostic support for multiple diseases simultaneously deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvediagnostic support accuracyVSAvoidmulti-disease comparison capability
Core Design Contradiction:
Measurement precisionVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The system evaluates brain shrinkage for multiple diseases simultaneously by calculating shrinkage scores for multiple target sites (e.g., hippocampus for Alzheimer's, midbrain for Lewy body dementia) from the same MRI image, enabling one system to serve multiple diagnostic purposes without requiring separate evaluation systems for each disease

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The system adds a new dimension of comparison by calculating and displaying shrinkage ratios that represent the relative contribution of each disease to the observed brain shrinkage, transforming the diagnostic output from simple shrinkage measurements to multi-dimensional diagnostic information that enables disease differentiation

Inventive Principle:
Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

2Loss of information

If the system calculates and displays detailed shrinkage information for multiple brain sites, then the diagnostic information completeness is improved, but the device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvediagnostic information completenessVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Loss of informationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments the diagnostic evaluation into distinct components: identifying multiple target sites associated with different diseases, calculating shrinkage scores for each site independently, and then synthesizing these into shrinkage ratios. This segmentation allows complex multi-disease analysis to be broken down into manageable, independent processing steps

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The shrinkage ratio serves as an intermediary metric that synthesizes information from multiple shrinkage scores. Instead of directly comparing complex multi-site shrinkage data, the system uses shrinkage ratios as an intermediate representation that simplifies the interpretation of relative disease contributions to overall brain shrinkage

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentEP3199102B1Medical image display processing method, medical image display processing device, and program
Publication Date: 2021.01.27 DAI NIPPON PRINTING CO LTD
  • EP3199102B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP3199102B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP3199102B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

According to the present invention, a diagnosis support device, which is suitable for comparing different diseases, is provided, along with others. In the diagnosis support device 1 of the present invention, the input of an MRI brain image of a subject is received (step S1), and a shrinkage score, which represents the degree of shrinkage of the brain, is calculated based on the MRI brain image (step S2). Subsequently, sites to be compared in the brain are identified (step S3). Then, a degree of shrinkage, which represents the degree of shrinkage of each of the identified sites, and a shrinkage ratio, which is the ratio between the degrees of shrinkage of the sites, are calculated, and then compared and displayed (step S4).