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At least 577 records · Page 32Linked to original sources

PubMed2001

Mosaicking and enhancement of slit lamp biomicroscopic fundus images.

AIMS: To process video slit lamp biomicroscopic fundus image sequences in order to generate wide field, high quality fundus image montages which might be suitable for photodocumentation. METHODS: Slit lamp biomicroscopic fundus examination was performed on human volunteers with a contact or non-contact lens. A stock, charge coupled device camera permitted image capture and storage of the image sequence at 30 frames per second. Acquisition time was approximately 30 seconds. Individual slit lamp biomicroscope fundus image frames were aligned and blended with custom developed software. RESULTS: The developed algorithms allowed for highly accurate alignment and blending of partially overlapping slit lamp biomicroscopic fundus images to generate a seamless, high quality, wide field montage. CONCLUSIONS: Video image acquisition and processing algorithms allow for mosaicking and enhancement of slit lamp biomicroscopic fundus images. The improved quality and wide field of view may confer suitability for inexpensive, real time photodocumentation of disc and macular abnormalities.

Algorithms↗

PubMed1997

An EKG monitor network.

A networkable kardiomonitor CM-3 is described as well as the associated central monitoring device CEMON. CM-3 allows archiving as well as efficient control of all relevant measurements, alarms and trend data in the last 2 years of use of the equipment. This data is easily reviewed, printed or saved on removable media to be included in the hospital patient documentation. The network is based on standard Ethernet bus architecture and PC Ethernet adapters. This high speed medium allows efficient real time control and immediate reaction to each alarm situation. Easy integration with other parts of the hospital information system is possible. In addition, critical monitor files can be efficiently backed up and possibilities are open for hierarchical storage with high security options.

Computer Communication Networks↗

PubMed1994

Medical data capture and display: the importance of clinicians' workstation design.

The Department of Veterans Affairs is developing, testing and evaluating the benefits of physicians' workstations as an aid to medical data capture in an outpatient clinic setting. The physician's workstation uses a graphical user interface to aid the clinician in recording encounter data. Various input devices including keyboard, mouse, pen, voice, barcode reader, and tablet are available on the workstations, and user preferences will be examined. Access to general services such as electronic mail and reference databases is also available. The workstation provides a wide variety of patient specific data from the hospital information system, including image data. The single data collection process by the clinician will also provide data for the cost recovery process.

Computer Peripherals↗

PubMed1999

A generic digital imaging and communications in medicine solution for a bidirectional interface between the modality and the radiology information system.

The Relay is a generic Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM)-compliant software package. It is a bidirectional interface between the modality and the radiology information system (RIS) that uses DICOM modality worklist and modality-performed procedure step services. This device can eliminate discrepancies between patient demographic information contained in the RIS and that entered at the imaging modality. The Relay receives the worklist for a modality from the RIS. It verifies the accession number (ACC#) and medical record number (MRN) received from the RIS for a study against the ACC# and MRN entered at the modality after that study is pushed to the Relay by the modality. If the values for the ACC# and MRN contained in the image header coincide with the values stored on the RIS, the patient demographics and study protocol contained in the RIS is downloaded into the image header. The study is then automatically routed to the specified destination without technologist intervention. Images whose header does not coincide with data on the RIS are flagged for subsequent reconciliation by the technologist. When the study is completed, the Relay updates the status of the study in the RIS, if the RIS provides DICOM performed procedure step service. When required, the Relay is able to split a single study into two or more series and assign each an ACC#. Other Relay functionality includes sending studies to multiple DICOM devices, adding comments to the image header, and DICOM print service. Should the archive be unavailable to receive images for whatever reason, the Relay can store studies so image acquisition can continue without interruption or it can divert studies directly to a diagnostic workstation. This Relay provides redundancy and fault-tolerance capabilities for picture archiving and communications systems. It is vendor-independent and will function with any DICOM modality, RIS, or archive.

Computer Communication Networks↗

PubMed2004

A mobile phone integrated health care delivery system of medical images.

With the growing computing capability of mobile phones, a handy mobile controller is developed for accessing the picture archiving and communication system (PACS) to enhance image management for clinicians with nearly no restriction in time and location using various wireless communication modes. The PACS is an integrated system for the distribution and archival of medical images that are acquired by different imaging modalities such as CT (computed tomography) scanners, CR (computed radiography) units, DR (digital radiography) units, US (ultrasonography) scanners, and MR (magnetic resonance) scanners. The mobile controller allows image management of the PACS including display, worklisting, query and retrieval of medical images in DICOM format. In this mobile system, a server program is developed in a PACS Web server which serves as an interface for client programs in the mobile phone and the enterprise PACS for image distribution in hospitals. The application processing is performed on the server side to reduce computational loading in the mobile device. The communication method of mobile phones can be adapted to multiple wireless environments in Hong Kong. This allows greater feasibility to accommodate the rapidly changing communication technology. No complicated computer hardware or software is necessary. Using a mobile phone embedded with the mobile controller client program, this system would serve as a tool for heath care and medical professionals to improve the efficiency of the health care services by speedy delivery of image information. This is particularly important in case of urgent consultation, and it allows health care workers better use of the time for patient care.

Cell Phone↗

PubMedDate not supplied

On-line recording of diffraction pattern changes from single muscle fibers subjected to quick stretch and release.

Transient diffraction pattern parameter and tension responses were recorded from isolated frog semitendinosus muscle fibers subjected to quick stretches and release with an on-line digital acquisition system. The sarcomere length was determined from the zero to first order diffraction line spacing detected with a charge-coupled device photosensing array. Diffraction data was digitized and sequentially stored every 18 ms by a PDP-8 machine language program for later analysis. Sarcomere length, diffraction line intensity, and sarcomere length dispersion were determined with an 8080A microcomputer program incorporating extended math and floating point software packages. Tension records were simultaneously photographed from a storage oscilloscope. Quick stretches and release on tetanically stimulated single skeletal muscle fibers indicated that the transient sarcomere length change occurred in less than 18 ms. Transient tension responses demonstrated a long (150-200 ms) tension recovery phase with no corresponding sarcomere length change. There were no significant alterations in the diffraction line intensity or dispersion following the length perturbations.

Animals↗

PubMed1991

Development of an integrated filing system for endoscopic images.

A new integrated filing system for endoscopic images has been developed, comprising a main image filing system and subsystems located at different stations. A hybrid filing system made up of both digital and analog filing devices was introduced to construct this system that combines the merits of the two filing methods. Each subsystem provided with a video processor, is equipped with a digital filing device, and routine images were recorded in the analog image filing device of the main system. The use of a multi-input adapter enabled simultaneous input of analog images from up to 8 video processors. Recorded magneto-optical disks make it possible to recall the digital images at any station in the hospital; the disks are copied without image degradation and also utilised for image processing. This system promises reliable storage and integrated, efficient management of endoscopic information. It also costs less to install than the so-called PACS (picture archiving and communication system), which connects all the stations of the hospital using optical fiber cables.

Analog-Digital Conversion↗

PubMedDate not supplied

Are minidisc recorders adequate for the study of respiratory sounds?

Digital audio tape (DAT) recorders have become the de facto gold standard recording devices for lung sounds. Sound recorded on DAT is compact-disk (CD) quality with adequate sensitivity from below 20 Hz to above 20 KHz. However, DAT recorders have drawbacks. Although small, they are relatively heavy, the recording mechanism is complex and delicate, and finding one desired track out of many is inconvenient. A more recent development in portable recording devices is the minidisc (MD) recorder. These recorders are widely available, inexpensive, small and light, rugged, mechanically simple, and record digital data in tracks that may be named and accessed directly. Minidiscs hold as much recorded sound as a compact disk but in about 1/5 of the recordable area. The data compression is achieved by use of a technique known as adaptive transform acoustic coding for minidisc (ATRAC). This coding technique makes decisions about what components of the sound would not be heard by a human listener and discards the digital information that represents these sounds. Most of this compression takes place on sounds above 5.5 KHz. As the intended use of these recorders is the storage and reproduction of music, it is unknown whether ATRAC will discard or distort significant portions of typical lung sound signals. We determined the suitability of MD recorders for respiratory sound research by comparing a variety of normal and pathologic lung sounds that were digitized directly into a computer and also after recording by a DAT recorder and 2 different MD recorders (Sharp and Sony). We found that the frequency spectra and waveforms of respiratory sounds were not distorted in any important way by recording on the two MD recorders tested.

Algorithms↗

PubMed1987

Analysis of single channel currents with a microprocessor based device.

Data evaluation of single channel currents obtained from artificial black lipid membranes and with the patch clamp method is an important part of every single channel study, but it is a time consuming part often exceeding the time for experimentation and recording by far. We describe here a microprocessor based device, which allows the experimentator to analyse in a simple way the distribution of current levels in a single channel trace (amplitude-histogram analysis of single channel currents) either online, or offline. Current levels are sampled at a constant frequency of 6 kHz and the relative frequencies of occurrence of these current levels are displayed as a histogram on the screen of an analog or digital storage oscilloscope. The data reducing algorithm of this analyser eliminates the requirement of large amounts of mass storage that normally is needed for digital amplitude-histogram analysis of single channel recordings. Examples of evaluation for both a voltage operated cation-channel and a blockage of a potassium channel by tetraethylammoniumchloride (TEA) are given.

Animals↗

PubMed2006

Health delivery system changes required when integrating telemedicine into existing treatment flows of information and patients.

Business model and financial recovery issues dominate discussions about using telemedicine to improve chronic disease management. The technical issues are numerous, daunting and complex, but many can be addressed using the resources and infrastructure available in large, well-integrated clinical information systems. The cost-benefit balance will change when it becomes possible to use devices that are owned by patients for everyday use, rather than installing special-purpose devices for telemedicine. Technology and communications capabilities are driven mainly by market factors other than uses for health care. Provider-side telemedicine capabilities, specifically for upload, storage and display of home medical data, will improve as technology develops. How health-care providers will process the larger amount of data made available by telemedicine is a clinical issue, but it is likely that software will emerge to assist in this task. The alignment of financial incentives for health-care providers is a decisive factor in understanding why telemedicine has had substantial deployment within the US Veterans Hospital Administration system, and to some extent within prison health systems and the Kaiser Permanente Health Plan, but much less widely in other settings.

Chronic Disease↗

PubMed1998

Automated routing of DICOM CT, MR, and CR images: solving the pitfalls of vendor-specific DICOM implementations.

This paper details our experience in developing and implementing an automated DICOM Image Router. This workstation serves as a gateway between image acquisition devices and image display and storage devices. Images are checked for demographic input errors and data format inconsistencies between the source and destination devices. Based on the configured rules, and image may be held for manual correction and/or distributed to multiple locations. Distribution is based on easily configured environmental variables and rules files which may be changed as needed. For example, CT images are typically sent to the archive and to a radiologist's display workstation. If the patient came from the Emergency Department, a copy of the images are sent to a clinician display workstation located in the Emergency Department. If the patient has suffered trauma to the head, a copy of the images are sent to a display workstation in the Neurosurgery Department for possible consultation. The software was developed on a UNIX-based platform and utilizes a Fast Ethernet network. To date, images from a variety of devices have been acquired: General Electric HiSpeed CT/I scanner, General Electric Signa MRI scanner, Philips Thoravision Digital Chest unit, and Fuji AC-3CS Computed Radiography (CR) unit. Each device has presented new challenges in providing a uniform look to patient demographics in the PACS archive. The workstation also provides a buffer in the event of network outages, storing images for later transmission when the network and/or a workstation recover.

Diagnostic Imaging↗

PubMed1991

[Digital luminescence radiography. Part 1: Basic principle, technical execution and clinical use].

Digital luminescence radiography (DLR) is a new technique in projection radiography, which enables the production of plain X-ray images and motion tomographies with high quality, and is suitable for digital image management. With this procedure the X-ray image produced by conventional roentgen devices is temporarily stored on a reusable photostimulable storage phosphor screen which is characterized by a wide dynamic range. A laser beam scans the exposed phosphor screen and recovers the stored X-ray information as photostimulated luminescence radiation. A photomultiplier converts the emitted light into electrical signals. After normalization and digitization the signals are transmitted to an image processor. The stored digital image can be individually processed and displayed, digitally archived or transferred to any location. The technique is described in two following papers. Part 1 covers the basic principle of the system and the technical implementation of the data acquisition with its advantages and disadvantages as compared with conventional film/screen radiography.

Equipment Design↗

PubMed2005

Design and simulation of a pneumatic, stored-energy, hybrid orthosis for gait restoration.

Loss of mobility due to lower limb paralysis is a common result of thoracic level spinal cord injury. Functional electrical stimulation (FES) can restore primitive gait in the vicinity of a wheelchair by using electrical stimulation to generate muscle contractions. A new concept for FES-assisted gait is presented that combines electrical stimulation with an orthosis that contains a fluid power system to store and transfer energy during the gait cycle. The energy storage orthosis (ESO) can be driven through a complete gait cycle using only stimulation of the quadriceps muscles. The conceptual design of the ESO was completed and implemented in a dynamic simulation model and in a benchtop prototype for engineering measurements. No studies were conducted with human subjects. The results demonstrate the potential of the ESO concept for a feasible gait-assist system and the validity of the simulation model as a means for designing the system.

Computer Simulation↗

PubMed2006

A remote data access architecture for home-monitoring health-care applications.

With the aging of the population and the increasing patient preference for receiving care in their own homes, remote home care is one of the fastest growing areas of health care in Taiwan and many other countries. Many remote home-monitoring applications have been developed and implemented to enable both formal and informal caregivers to have remote access to patient data so that they can respond instantly to any abnormalities of in-home patients. The aim of this technology is to give both patients and relatives better control of the health care, reduce the burden on informal caregivers and reduce visits to hospitals and thus result in a better quality of life for both the patient and his/her family. To facilitate their widespread adoption, remote home-monitoring systems take advantage of the low-cost features and popularity of the Internet and PCs, but are inherently exposed to several security risks, such as virus and denial-of-service (DoS) attacks. These security threats exist as long as the in-home PC is directly accessible by remote-monitoring users over the Internet. The purpose of the study reported in this paper was to improve the security of such systems, with the proposed architecture aimed at increasing the system availability and confidentiality of patient information. A broker server is introduced between the remote-monitoring devices and the in-home PCs. This topology removes direct access to the in-home PC, and a firewall can be configured to deny all inbound connections while the remote home-monitoring application is operating. This architecture helps to transfer the security risks from the in-home PC to the managed broker server, on which more advanced security measures can be implemented. The pros and cons of this novel architecture design are also discussed and summarized.

Ambulatory Care↗

PubMed2002

Ergonomics evaluation of a government office building.

An ergonomics team from the US Army Center for Health Promotion and Preventive medicine evaluated 465 video display terminal (VDT) workstations in a Government office building over an 18-day period. Each workstation evaluation involved an assessment of the worker, the chair, the desk, the keyboard, the pointing device, the monitor, and the office environmental conditions. The team also collected worker pain and injury information. The problems seen during the evaluation were characteristic of most office environments where VDT workstation furniture was purchased before the advent of mouse-driven software. The majority of furniture evaluated was not designed to meet the demands of intensive mouse use for prolonged periods of time. Much of the workstation furniture was not adjustable, chairs lacked adequate back support, and workers assumed non-neutral postures. As a result, more than 35% of the workers evaluated complained of on-the-job pain. New office furniture that is adjustable, adequate desk space and storage space were among the solutions recommended by the ergonomics team.

Computers↗

PubMed2003

Introducing BF++: AC++ framework for cognitive bio-feedback systems design.

OBJECTIVE: This paper addressed the issue of building-up a framework for the realization of several cognitive bio-feedback (CBF) systems. It minimizes the programming effort and maximizes the efficiency and the cross-platform portability so that it can be used with many platforms (either software or hardware). METHODS: A generic CBF system was decomposed into six modules: acquisition, kernel, feedback rule, patient feedback, operator user interface and persistent storage. The way in which these modules interact was defined by immutable software interfaces in a way that allows to completely substitute a module without the need to modify the others. RESULTS: Three Brain Computer Interface engines were developed with less than 40 lines of C++ code each. They can also be used under virtually any platform that supports an ANSI C++ compiler. CONCLUSION: A framework for the implementation of a wide range of CBF systems was developed. Compared to the other approaches that are described in the literature, the proposed one is the most efficient, the most protable across different platforms, the most generic and the one that allows the realization of the cheapest final systems.

Cognition↗

PubMed2005

The JAVA-based DICOM query interface DicoSE.

DICOM 3 is a very elaborate standard for the communication between medical image devices. It is published in several parts by the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA). To adequately visualize the data structure defined in parts 3, 5 and 6 of the DICOM standard, we implemented the web based Dicom Search Engine (DicoSE). It allows for querying the DICOM standard data dictionary for defined data fields and visualizes the topology of the data which is inherently present in DICOM datasets. For the administration of the underlying data a web based administration interface is provided. The service is entirely based on freely available software.

Information Storage and Retrieval↗

PubMed1998

Investigation of low-voltage on-resonance ion selection for Fourier transform mass spectrometry.

Low-voltage on-resonance ion selection (LOIS) was recently introduced as an alternative technique for ion selection and storage. Under high pressure conditions and similar to the technique of quadrupolar axialization, unwanted (unselected) trapped ions are eliminated from the analysis cell through collisions with cell plates following orbital expansion. The ions remaining after tens of seconds of mass selection can be detected with better coherence, leading to improvements in ion detection and sensitivity. Here, experiments designed to test ion remeasurement and ion transfer capabilities are presented. Simulations of ion motion give insight into the possible mechanism of ion cooling, which does appear to be the same as that of the axialization process. Because of its ease of use, lack of need for additional hardware devices, and comparable ion selection results, LOIS is an attractive alternative for trapped ion experiments.

Computer Simulation↗