The Audible Human Project

描述(由申请人提供)：国家医学图书馆的可见人项目(VHP)促进了先进可视化软件的发展，有助于解剖学教育，并已成为生物医学研究人员的宝贵资源。它帮助开发了许多技术，应用范围从改进成像技术到模拟手术过程。我们的长期目标是开发一个类似的“可听人项目”(AHP)。这将准确地模拟自然产生的声音的产生、传播和非侵入性测量(例如使用听诊器)，这些声音与心血管、肺和胃肠功能有关。它还将模拟外部引入的声音，例如通过在皮肤表面进行敲击。这样一个全面的工具将对医学教育和研究产生重大影响。它可以促进新的廉价、便携的听诊方法的发展，以及更先进的多模式声学成像方式的发展。从教育的角度来看，最近的研究强调了熟练听诊在医学上的持续重要性，以及这项技能在年轻医生中正在衰落的事实。AHP可以帮助提供更有效的教育体验。学生不会只听录音。他或她将能够交互地改变解剖学和病理学，以及传感器的位置、类型和接触压力，以便听到、“看到”和“感觉”(如果集成在触觉环境中)结果，并将它们与可量化的指标相关联。此R03应用程序的具体目标是开发和实验验证以肺部系统为重点的上半身声学模型。该模型将通过放置在躯干表面的接触传感器来模拟呼吸声的产生、传输和测量。它还将模拟外部引入的声音通过呼吸道或通过敲击躯干表面的传输和测量。将基于x射线CT图像为3个健康人体受试者(男性)生成特定于受试者的躯干声学模型。然后，将使用对这些相同对象的详细声学测量来验证模拟模型。一旦得到验证，这种建模方法将被用于开发可通过NLM获得的VHP可见人类躯干的声学模型。然后，所有人都可以通过伊利诺伊大学芝加哥分校PI实验室中维护的网络服务器获得这一“可听人类男性”的躯干部件。为了实现这一目标，基于边界元素(BE)的计算代码将得到增强，该代码模拟包括肺气道和实质组织在内的生物组织中的声音传播，方法是结合肺部声源的产生并将其耦合到周围胸腔和软组织区域的有限元模型，以及包括与皮肤安装的传感器(如听诊器)的耦合，这些传感器可以具有自己的复杂动态行为。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The Visible Human Project (VHP) of the National Library of Medicine has catalyzed the development of advanced visualization software that has aided in anatomy education and has been an invaluable resource to biomedical researchers. It has aided in the development of numerous technologies, with applications spanning from improving imaging technology to simulating surgical procedures. Our long-term goal is to develop a comparable "Audible Human Project" (AHP). This would accurately simulate the production, transmission and noninvasive measurement (for example using stethoscopes) of naturally-occurring sounds associated with cardiovascular, pulmonary and gastro-intestinal function. It would also model externally introduced sounds, for example via percussion at the skin surface. Such a comprehensive tool would have a significant impact on medical education and research. It could catalyze the development of new inexpensive, portable auscultative methods, as well as more advanced multimode acoustic imaging modalities. From an educational perspective, recent studies have emphasized the continued importance of skilled auscultation in medicine and the fact that this skill is in decline among younger physicians. The AHP could help provide a more effective educational experience. A student would not just listen to audio recordings. He or she would be able to interactively vary anatomy and pathology, as well as sensor position, type and contact pressure, so as to hear, "see" and "feel" (if integrated within a haptic environment) the results and associate them with quantifiable metrics. The specific aim of this R03 application is to develop and experimentally validate an upper torso acoustic model focused on the pulmonary system. This model will simulate breath sound generation, transmission and measurement via contact sensors placed on the torso surface. It will also simulate the transmission and measurement of externally introduced sound via the airways or via percussion of the torso surface. Subject- specific torso acoustic models will be generated for 3 healthy human subjects (males) based on x-ray CT images. Detailed acoustic measurements on these same subjects will then be used to validate the simulation model. Once validated this modeling approach will be used to develop an acoustic torso model for the visible human male of the VHP available via the NLM. This torso component of a "audible human male" will then be made available to all via a webserver maintained in the PI's laboratory at the University of Illinois at Chicago. To accomplish this, a boundary element (BE) based computational code that simulates sound propagation in biological tissues, including the lung airways and parenchymal tissue, will be enhanced by incorporating lung sound source generation and coupling it to a finite element model of the surrounding ribcage and soft tissue region, and by including coupling to skin-mounted sensors, like stethoscopes, which can have their own complex dynamic behavior.