Interoperability. Radiology without

Transcription

1 Interoperability ADVANCED Solutions to complex ISSUES in Radiology Radiology without Barriers

2 ISSUES IN RADIOLOGY ACHIEVING interoperability in medical imaging Many of the current issues in medical imaging result from the lack of interoperability between formats and systems. IMAGE Information Systems Ltd. offers state-of-theart solutions to face these challenges and increase the efficiency of the radiological workflow. There are still many unresolved issues in medical imaging. Depending on configurations, workflows or even local standards, these issues can have a negative influence on the expected performance of the radiology department. Given its complexity, a proper solution may demand countless resources and brain power. Some may even feel that there is no possible way out. Thanks to the expertise gained from creating state-of-the-art features for some of the most demanding projects in medical imaging, we are able to think outside the box and offer specialized solutions to complicated and specific problems. The following list shows a few of the many challenges for which we have created solutions: Separation of in-phase and opposed-phase MRI sequences into individual series as used in Chemical Shift Imaging Separation of various diffusion coefficients (e.g. B values) into individual series to process data with any kind of 2D reading station, e.g. for breast, liver, or kidney MRI imaging Separation of 4D MRI scans into 3D or 2D MRI scans to process data with any kind of 2D reading station, e.g. for breast, liver, or kidney MRI imaging Automatic conversion of JPEG, TIFF, or BMP images to DICOM images using iq-view and the Dropbox folder feature Automatic patient reconciliation for teleradiology using nonunique patient IDs and accession numbers Automatic image retrieval from an external PACS directly from any HIS Automatic compilation and tabulation of any DICOM tag value for performing extensive surveys or statistical analyses of variables contained in large amounts of DI- COM objects (such as radiation doses). These challenges, and several others, are outlined on the following pages along with the solutions we offer to them. We enjoy creating workflows that work! If you have a special challenge with no current solution, feel free to contact us with a brief description of your project and its requirements. We will be glad to begin a discussion of the possibilities that lie ahead. THE SOLUTION CAN BE SO SIMPLE 2

3 CHALLENGE: Scrolling through Chemical Shift MRI sequences is inconvenient since the in-phase and opposed-phase images are mixed in an alternating sequence A) Series with in-phase images only Output: Two properly ordered individual series MRI Devices MRI series B) Series with opposed-phase images only Result: Smooth navigation through the MRI series CHALLENGE: MRI sequences with diffusion coefficients cannot be processed as images on standard 2D reading stations AAAAAAAAA A) Series with A value diffusion coefficients BBBBBBBBB B) Series with B value diffusion coefficients C C C C C C C C C MRI Devices MRI series C) Series with C value diffusion coefficients Output: Series will be created/separated by diffusion coefficient. Result: Processing of images with diffusion coefficients can be performed on 2D reading stations for each series individually. 3

4 CHALLENGE: 4D MRI scans (e.g. temporal T 1 with contrast enhanced sequences) cannot be processed on standard 2D reading stations. SP1t0 SP1t1 SP1t2 SP1t3 2D series SP2t0 SP2t1 SP2t2 SP2t3 MRI Devices MRI 4D series 3D series Result: Independent series creation for each temporal position CHALLENGE: Some devices transmit patient demographics in a format that the target system cannot process (e.g. patient ID does not have enough digits). Modality Patient ID: Patient ID: PACS Result: Leading zeros are added to the Patient ID tag to ensure data compatibility with the target system. 4

5 CHALLENGE: When hospitals share images, the demographic data is often incorrectly matched by the receiving system, thus creating a new patient to whom no existing images can be assigned (a common issue in countries without standard Patient IDs). Patient ID: ABC HIS/ RIS Patient ID: DEF Forwarding PACS Patient ID: ABC Result: When an object from an external PACS arrives, queries the master patient index of a connected HIS by HL7 (MPI) for the target patient ID and accession number. It then adjusts the dataset to the target patient s ID and accession number and forwards the data to the target PACS. If the images are returned to the source PACS, the original information is still available. Patient ID: ABC DEF Target PACS CHALLENGE: When external DICOM data is received, demographic data may appear as garbage characters due to the fact that different character sets and standards may have been used by the modalities and the PACS. External PACS Patient name: Ольга Сергеевна Строганова Patient name: Á+*ó #~ jr* Local PACS External PACS Patient name: Ольга Сергеевна Строганова Patient name: Ольга Сергеевна Строганова Local PACS Adaptation of patient name Result: is able to recognize and homogenize the character sets of any DICOM object before sending it to any PACS or workstation. 5

6 CHALLENGE: When migrating DICOM objects from an old system to a new one, Patient IDs of both systems may overlap, generating inconsistencies and search problems. Site 1 Teleradiology Site 2 Result: All migrated data is scanned, and patient IDs and accession numbers are modified in order to avoid matching problems in the target system database. CHALLENGE: It is difficult to find images in the PACS if the Modalities send images using differently spelled Institution Names (County Hosp. vs. County Hospital) or Referring Physicians (Dow, Joe vs. Dr. Dow, J.). Institution Name: County Hosp. Modality 1 Institution Name: County Hosp. Modality 2 Institution Name: County Hospital Result: All incoming images are analyzed and selected DICOM tags are adapted to ensure data consistency. 6

7 CHALLENGE: Most ultrasound devices deliver all images of a study in one single series, mixing both single and cine images. Consequently, it can be difficult to manage common ultrasound studies in a PACS. Series 1 image 1 Series 2 image 1 Ultrasound Series 3 images 1-4 Devices Series 1 images 1-6 Result: separates the images into sorted series allowing to review them in a structured way. CHALLENGE: Even in the same radiology center some operators use different abbreviations to refer to the same body part, or they systematically use different procedure codes for the same examination. DR Modality Body Part: Chest Body Part: Chest Thorax PACS Body Part: Thorax CR Modality Body Part: Thorax Result: Upon the images arrival, body parts and procedure codes are analyzed and harmonized, no matter how they were entered at the modality or worklist. 7

8 IMAGE Information Systems is an international company group with offices in the USA, Germany and the UK, which offers complete, user friendly and cost-effective medical imaging solutions. Thousands of satisfied clients all over the world benefit from our state-ofthe-art products for PACS, RIS, nuclear medicine, medical displays, X-ray solutions, 3D processing and teleradiology. Our company at a glance We have pioneered several innovations in the market: We have introduced MED-TAB, the first DICOM-calibrated medical tablet worldwide to provide superior portable image analysis Our iq-router supports virtually all DICOM image formats and transfer syntaxes in data transmission DICOMReader has the highest available read-in rate of patient CD-ROMs, ensuring compatibility with almost all available imaging modalities and vendors IMAGE Information Systems provides the second largest digital imaging user forum on earth, enabling users to share knowledge and best practice. To learn more about us and our products, please visit our website. Picture proof: Pictures by IMAGE Information Systems Ltd. Medical Imaging with iq! Interoperability PUB INT EN 011R Our SOLUTIONS For YOUR IMAGING NEEDS Radiologists Hospitals Veterinarians Orthopedists Mammography RIS/PACS Integration PACS Continuity Planning Teleradiology RIS and PACS for radiologists RIS and PACS for hospitals Tailored veterinary RIS and PACS Orthopedic PACS and workflow tools RIS and PACS for breast care units Integrate iq-system PACS with any existing Medical Information System Ensure permanent access to your PACS Available technologies in remote diagnostics image Information systems Ltd. 3Rd floor 207 Regent Street London W1B 3HH United Kingdom Tel. UK: Tel. GER: Tel. US: Fax GER: info@image-systems.biz