Retrieval of DICOM echocardiographic images using the diagnosis and biological structure features as search keywords

This paper presents a method for DICOM echocardiographic images retrieval using the biological structures and diagnosis features as search keywords. The main idea is to introduce for each type of echocardiographic investigation a structured reporting based on a formalized medical image description pattern. According to this pattern, the patient's ultrasound images are described in terms of biological structures and their features. In this way the retrieval of relevant images using the features as search keywords is facilitated. A database containing relevant images and the associated qualifying information was developed. This database allows carrying out research and educational processes.