Multimodality cardiac image review station using dynamic decompression of JPEG images

A cardiology review station for clinical use has been developed which can decompress, zoom, and display full resolution JPEG- encoded cardiac angiograms and echocardiograms in real-time (30 frames/second). The review station is installed in a network which includes a digital image archival system throughout Duke University Medical Center. The review station consists of a DEC 3000/600 AXP workstation with a DEC J300 sight and sound multimedia board. The J300 is used to decompress up to 45 true color JPEG-encoded frames/sec. at normal (512 × 512) resolution and 30 frames/sec. at 1.5 × zoom. Digitally acquired 512 × 512 × 8 bit monochrome angiograms as well as 600 × 430 × 8 bit color and monochrome echocardiograms are transferred to the workstation where they are JPEG-encoded in real time using the J300 board. A compression factor of approximately 15:1 is being used. A graphical user interface (GUI) developed using OSF/Motif 1.2 enables a clinical user to simultaneously display and control several image sequences. A sequence can be retrieved in under three seconds and displayed dynamically in forward or reverse directions with instantaneous speed control. Utilizing a commercial relational database (Sybase), the GUI organizes image sequences for a patient by image modality, location, time, and view. A schematic representation of cardiac anatomy allows a user to view specific angiographic image sequences by selecting appropriate objects in the anatomic diagram.

Duke Scholars

Author Thomas Michael Bashore Medicine, Cardiology