Facilitating comparison of medical images

1. A method for facilitating viewer comparison of a plurality of medical images of at least one body part on a softcopy review workstation, the softcopy review workstation including at least one processor and a display device, the method being implemented by the softcopy review workstation, the method comprising:

receiving, by the softcopy review workstation, first and second medical images of the at least one body part; and

displaying, by the softcopy review workstation, said first and second medical images on said display device such that the second medical image appears as a spatially registered underlay to the first medical image exposed through a first aperture therein, the first medical image masking the second medical image outside the first aperture, the second medical image masking the first medical image inside the first aperture, said first aperture having at least one edge that is viewer-manipulable in a back-and-forth manner so that the first and second medical images can be visually compared with minimal eye movement.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein said first aperture comprises one of (i) an entire half-plane of the first medical image such that said at least one edge consists of a single line thereacross, and (ii) a viewer-definable geometric shape including said at least one edge that openably and closeably exposes the second medical image from underneath the first medical image according to viewer manipulations of said at least one edge.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein said first and second medical images comprise (i) identical views of a same body part acquired at different times using a same medical imaging modality, or (ii) corresponding views of laterally corresponding body parts acquired using the same medical imaging modality, wherein said medical imaging modality is selected from the group consisting of: x-ray, ultrasound, computerized tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT).

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein said first and second medical images are acquired substantially concurrently using different medical imaging modalities selected from the group consisting of: x-ray, ultrasound, computerized tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT).

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein said first and second medical images are derived from nearby parallel planes of a common data volume acquired using a three-dimensional imaging modality.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein said first and second medical images represent nearby parallel planes of a breast volume acquired from an x-ray tomosynthesis modality.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein said at least one edge is sufficiently sharp such that a lateral boundary between the first and second medical images corresponding to said at least one edge is visually apparent even when differences between the first and second medical images are relatively slight in a vicinity of said at least one edge.

8. The method of claim 7 , further comprising processing said first and second medical images near said at least one edge to provide visual emphasis of said lateral boundary.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein said processing comprises one of more of high-pass spatial filtering, grayscale ramping, colorization, and image warping.

10. A softcopy review workstation, comprising:

a display device;

a user input device; and

a processor in communication with said display device and said user input device, said processor causing said display device to display a first medical image and a second medical image of at least one body part such that the second medical image appears as a spatially registered underlay to the first medical image exposed through a first aperture therein, the first medical image masking the second medical image outside the first aperture, the second medical image masking the first medical image inside the first aperture, said first aperture having at least one edge that is movable by actuation of said user input device, whereby the first and second medical images can be visually compared with minimal user eye movement.

11. The softcopy review workstation of claim 10 , wherein said first aperture comprises one of (i) an entire half-plane of the first medical image such that said at least one edge consists of a single line thereacross, and (ii) a user-definable geometric shape including said at least one edge that openably and closeably exposes the second medical image from underneath the first medical image according to said actuation of said user input device.

12. The softcopy review workstation of claim 10 , wherein said first and second medical images comprise (i) identical views of a same body part acquired at different times using a same medical imaging modality, or (ii) corresponding views of laterally corresponding body parts acquired using the same medical imaging modality, wherein said medical imaging modality is selected from the group consisting of: x-ray, ultrasound, computerized tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT).

13. The softcopy review workstation of claim 10 , wherein said first and second medical images are acquired substantially concurrently using different medical imaging modalities selected from the group consisting of: x-ray, ultrasound, computerized tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT).

14. The softcopy review workstation of claim 10 , wherein said first and second medical images are derived from nearby parallel planes of a common data volume acquired using a three-dimensional imaging modality.

15. The softcopy review workstation of claim 10 , wherein said first and second medical images represent nearby parallel planes of a breast volume acquired from an x-ray tomosynthesis modality.

16. The softcopy review workstation of claim 10 , wherein said at least one edge is sufficiently sharp such that a lateral boundary between the first and second medical images corresponding to said at least one edge is visually apparent even when differences between the first and second medical images are relatively slight in a vicinity of said at least one edge.

17. A computer readable medium tangibly embodying one or more sequences of instructions wherein execution of the one or more sequences of instructions by one or more processors causes the one or more processors to facilitate viewer comparison of a plurality of medical images of at least one body part, comprising:

displaying said first and second medical images of said at least one body part such that the second medical image appears as a spatially registered underlay to the first medical image exposed through a first aperture therein, the first medical image masking the second medical image outside the first aperture, the second medical image masking the first medical image inside the first aperture; and

slidably translating at least one edge of said first aperture responsive to at least one viewer input so that the first and second medical images can be visually compared with minimal eye movement.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 17 , wherein said first aperture comprises one of (i) an entire half-plane of the first medical image such that said at least one edge consists of a single line thereacross, and (ii) a viewer-definable geometric shape including said at least one edge that openably and closeably exposes the second medical image from underneath the first medical image according to said slidable translation of said at least one edge.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 17 , wherein said first and second medical images comprise (i) identical views of a same body part acquired at different times using a same medical imaging modality, or (ii) corresponding views of laterally corresponding body parts acquired using the same medical imaging modality, wherein said medical imaging modality is selected from the group consisting of: x-ray, ultrasound, computerized tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT).

20. The computer readable medium of claim 17 , wherein said first and second medical images are acquired substantially concurrently using different medical imaging modalities selected from the group consisting of: x-ray, ultrasound, computerized tomography (CT), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), positron emission tomography (PET), and single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT).

21. The computer readable medium of claim 17 , wherein said first and second medical images represent nearby parallel planes of a breast volume acquired from an x-ray tomosynthesis modality.

22. The computer readable medium of claim 17 , wherein said first and second medical images are derived from nearby parallel planes of a common data volume acquired using a three-dimensional imaging modality.

23. The computer readable medium of claim 17 , wherein said at least one edge is sufficiently sharp such that a lateral boundary between the first and second medical images corresponding to said at least one edge is visually apparent even when differences between the first and second medical images are relatively slight in a vicinity of said at least one edge.