A distributed image processing support system application to medical imaging

Program supervision aims at automating the use of complex programs, independently of any particular application domain. Program supervision systems offer original techniques to plan and control program processing activities. The distribution of such systems becomes essential because real applications imply more and more participants on various sites. Therefore, given distributed data, programs and knowledge, our aim is to assist distant users, who are not necessarily specialists in image processing, in the latter task (image processing) and then in their decision making according to some parameter values and to their experience while observing the resulting images. Our current application relates to medical assistance in the use of medical imaging programs for osteoporosis detection in bone radiographies. A distributed approach will allow executing distant physician requests using an existing system and will favor collaborative work and sharing of knowledge to build new knowledge-based systems. The objective of this paper is to present a distributed system of computer-aided diagnosis and to show how a distributed program supervision system can assist distant physicians in their diagnosis so that the management of their requests remains transparent to them.