A Worldwide Research Network of Dynamic Cardiac Images

描述（由申请人提供）：这是响应项目公告PA-03-001（“跨分布式异构数据源的知识集成”）提交的快速通道STTR申请的第一阶段。我们建议在心脏成像技术有限责任公司（heartimaging Technologies， LLC）和杜克大学心血管磁共振中心（DCMRC）之间进行合作。合作的目标是开发软件，支持基于现有世界范围网络标准的全球动态心脏图像研究网络。Judd博士和他的同事是心血管MRI领域公认的领导者，并在世界各地不同的医疗机构建立了以前的合作者和学员基础。然而，由于缺乏在这些同事之间共享图像和其他数据的方法，合作研究进展缓慢。2000年5月，Judd博士和其他人成立了heartt，通过开发基于将图像从DICOM格式转换为网页的图像管理系统来解决这些问题。目前，HeartlT的第三代商业系统（WebPAX(tm)）允许在任何一台带有标准网络浏览器的计算机上查看动态磁共振图像。微软浏览器)，并在杜克大学医院的生产临床使用。在世界范围内，共有12个类似的heartt系统在医疗机构中运行，如约翰霍普金斯医院、纳什维尔心血管MRI研究所和德国的罗伯特博世医院。这些现有的系统，以及杜克大学和斯坦福大学之间的密切合作，提供了一个独特的机会，以低成本和高效的方式创建一个分布式网络来共享研究数据。在本STTR中，我们建议对现有的WebPAX（tm）软件进行重大扩展，该软件将允许这些现有系统连接在一起，形成一个完全基于世界范围web标准的全球医学图像共享网络。在短期内，这一成果将为支持快速发展的心血管MRI领域的合作研究提供重要的研究资源。然而，从长远来看，由此产生的全球心血管MRI网络将作为通用计算架构的全功能原型，旨在提供基于异构成像模式（MRI, echo, cath， SPECT）和分布在遥远地理位置（美洲，欧洲，亚洲）的设备（GE，西门子，飞利浦）获得的医学图像的全球集成。在这个应用程序中，我们建议创建一个“公共”WebPAX用户界面，允许从杜克大学以外的物理位置查看去识别图像数据（目标1），构建一个基于安全网站的“图像位置库”，用户、组和研究级别的帐户可以跨多个站点对去识别图像数据进行分类（目标2），并使用现实生活中的多中心研究来测试由此产生的全球动态心脏图像网络（目标3）。实现这些目标将同时为涉及心血管MRI的研究创造一个强大的工具，并通过II期SBIR/STTR将healtht扩展到支持其他成像模式。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): This is a Phase I of a fast-track STTR application submitted in response to Program Announcement PA-03-001 ("Knowledge Integration across Distributed Heterogeneous Data Sources"). We propose a collaborative effort between Heart Imaging Technologies, LLC (HeartIT) and Duke University's Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance Center (DCMRC). The goal of the collaboration is to develop software supporting a worldwide research network of dynamic cardiac images based on existing world-wide web standards. Dr. Judd and his colleagues are recognized leaders in the field of cardiovascular MRI and have an established base of former collaborators and trainees currently located at different medical institutions across the world. Collaborative research, however, has been slowed by a lack of methods to share images and other data amongst these colleagues. In May 2000, Dr. Judd and others formed HeartIT to address these issues by developing image management systems based on converting images from DICOM format to web pages. Currently, HeartlT's third-generation commercial system (WebPAX(tm)) allows viewing of dynamic magnetic resonance images on any computer with a standard web browser (eg. Microsoft Explorer) and is in production clinical use at Duke University Hospital. Worldwide, a total of twelve similar HeartIT systems are operating at medical institutions such as Johns Hopkins Hospital, the Nashville Cardiovascular MRI Institute, and the Robert Bosch Hospital in Germany. These existing systems, as well as the close collaboration between Duke University and HeartIT, provide a unique opportunity to inexpensively and efficiently create a distributed network to share research data. In this STTR, we propose a major expansion of the existing WebPAX(tm) software which will allow these existing systems to be connected together to form a global network for sharing medical images based entirely on world-wide web standards. In the short term, this achievement will produce an important research resource supporting collaborative studies focused on the rapidly evolving field of cardiovascular MRI. In the longer term, however, the resulting global cardiovascular MRI network will serve as a fully-functional prototype for a generally-applicable computing architecture designed to provide worldwide integration of medical images acquired based on heterogeneous imaging modalities (MRI, echo, cath, SPECT) and equipment (GE, Siemens, Philips) distributed across distant geographic locations (Americas, Europe, Asia). In this application, we propose to create a "public" WebPAX user interface which allows viewing of de-identified image data from physical locations outside Duke (Aim 1), to construct an "Image Location Library" based on a secure web site with user-, group- and study-level accounts to catalog de-identified image data across multiple sites (Aim 2), and to test the resulting worldwide network of dynamic cardiac images using a real-life multicenter research study (Aim 3). Achieving these Aims will simultaneously create a powerful tool for research involving cardiovascular MRI as well as position HeartIT for an expansion to support for other imaging modalities through a Phase II SBIR/STTR.