# US 11,992,293 B2 · Method and system for processing electronic images for boundary condition optimization > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 11,992,293 B2 - Document ID: US11992293B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 17/163,690 - Filed: 2021-02-01 - Published: 2021-05-27 - Granted: 2024-05-28 - Earliest claimed: 2013-07-30 - Assignees: HeartFlow, Inc. - Applicants: HeartFlow, Inc. - Inventors: Timothy A Fonte; Charles A. Taylor; Hyun Jin Kim; Sophia Khem - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11992293B2 ## CPC - A61B 5/02: Detecting, measuring or recording for evaluating the cardiovascular system, e.g. pulse, heart rate, blood pressure or blood flow - A61B 5/02007: {Evaluating blood vessel condition, e.g. elasticity, compliance} - A61B 5/02108: {from analysis of pulse wave characteristics} - A61B 5/026: Measuring blood flow {(A61B3/1233, A61B3/1241 take precedence)} - A61B 5/027: using catheters - A61B 5/7278: {Artificial waveform generation or derivation, e.g. synthesizing signals from measured signals} - A61B 6/032: {Transmission computed tomography [CT]} - A61B 6/504: {for diagnosis of blood vessels, e.g. by angiography} - A61B 6/507: {for determination of haemodynamic parameters, e.g. perfusion CT} - A61B 6/5217: {extracting a diagnostic or physiological parameter from medical diagnostic data} - G16H 50/50: for simulation or modelling of medical disorders - A61B 5/7246: {using correlation, e.g. template matching or determination of similarity} - A61B 6/50: specially adapted for specific body parts; specially adapted for specific clinical applications - Y02A 90/10: Information and communication technologies [ICT] supporting adaptation to climate change, e.g. for weather forecasting or climate simulation - A61B: DIAGNOSIS; SURGERY; IDENTIFICATION (usefulness limited to only animals A61D) - G16H: HEALTHCARE INFORMATICS, i.e. INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR THE HANDLING OR PROCESSING OF MEDICAL OR HEALTHCARE DATA - Y02A: TECHNOLOGIES FOR ADAPTATION TO CLIMATE CHANGE ## Abstract Embodiments include a system for determining cardiovascular information for a patient. The system may include at least one computer system configured to receive patient-specific data regarding a geometry of the patient's heart, and create a three-dimensional model representing at least a portion of the patient's heart based on the patient-specific data. The at least one computer system may be further configured to create a physics-based model relating to a blood flow characteristic of the patient's heart and determine a fractional flow reserve within the patient's heart based on the three-dimensional model and the physics-based model. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A system for determining cardiovascular information for a patient, the system comprising: at least one computer system configured to execute a method, the method comprising: retrieving data for a plurality of patients of a general population; dividing the general population into a tuning population and a testing population; retrieving data for each of a plurality of patients of the tuning population, the data including an invasively obtained measurement of a blood flow characteristic for each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population and a blood flow characteristic computed based at least in part on a respective boundary condition for each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population; determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics by iteratively comparing the computed blood flow characteristic for each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population to the invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurement of a respective patient of each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population; testing the boundary conditions tuning characteristics for each of a plurality of patients of the testing population different from the tuning population based on comparisons between non-invasively computed and invasively obtained blood flow characteristic values for each of the plurality of patients in the testing population; using the boundary conditions tuning characteristics and a patient-specific anatomical model representing at least a portion of an anatomy of a patient not in the tuning population or the testing population to compute a patient-specific blood flow characteristic value for the patient not in either the tuning population or the testing population; and outputting the patient-specific anatomical model and the computed patient-specific blood flow characteristic value. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein determining the boundary conditions tuning characteristics comprises determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics that tune respective boundary conditions to reduce a difference between the computed blood flow characteristic and the invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurement of each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The system of claim 2, wherein the data further includes invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurements at a plurality of anatomical locations and a corresponding computed blood flow characteristic for each of the patients based at least in part on respective boundary condition models at the plurality of anatomical locations. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, wherein determining the boundary conditions tuning characteristics comprises determining unique boundary conditions tuning characteristics for each of the plurality of anatomical locations. ### Claim 5 (depends on 2) The system of claim 2, wherein the method further comprises: storing the boundary conditions tuning characteristics. ### Claim 6 (depends on 2) The system of claim 2, wherein determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics comprises determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics that tune the respective boundary conditions to reduce the difference between the computed blood flow characteristic and the invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurement of each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population at a plurality of anatomical locations. ### Claim 7 (depends on 2) The system of claim 2, wherein the boundary conditions tuning characteristics alter parameters for calculating the computed blood flow characteristics. ### Claim 8 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the patient-specific anatomical model represents boundaries in at least a portion of an aorta and at least a portion of a plurality of coronary arteries emanating from the portion of the aorta. ### Claim 9 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises, after testing the boundary conditions tuning characteristics: determining that the boundary conditions tuning characteristics do not satisfy an accuracy threshold; and repeating the determining of the boundary conditions tuning characteristics step using at least some of the plurality of patients of the testing population. ### Claim 10 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises constructing the patient-specific anatomical model. ### Claim 11 A method for determining cardiovascular information for a patient using at least one computer system, the method comprising: retrieving, using at least one processor, data for a plurality of patients of a general population; dividing, using the at least one processor, the general population into a tuning population and a testing population; retrieving, using the at least one processor, data for each of a plurality of patients of the tuning population, the data including an invasively obtained measurement of a blood flow characteristic for each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population and a blood flow characteristic computed based at least in part on a respective boundary condition for each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population; determining, using the at least one processor, boundary conditions tuning characteristics by iteratively comparing the computed blood flow characteristic for each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population to the invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurement of a respective patient of each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population; testing the boundary conditions tuning characteristics for each of a plurality of patients of the testing population different form the tuning population based on comparisons between non-invasively computed and invasively obtained blood flow characteristic values for each of the plurality of patients in the testing population; using the boundary conditions tuning characteristics and a patient-specific anatomical model representing at least a portion of an anatomy of a patient not in the tuning population or the testing population to compute a patient-specific blood flow characteristic value for the patient not in either the tuning population or the testing population; and outputting the patient-specific anatomical model and the computed patient-specific blood flow characteristic value. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein determining the boundary conditions tuning characteristics comprises determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics that tune respective boundary conditions to reduce a difference between the computed blood flow characteristic and the invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurement of each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population. ### Claim 13 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein the data further includes invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurements at a plurality of anatomical locations and a corresponding computed blood flow characteristic for each of the patients based at least in part on respective boundary condition models at the plurality of anatomical locations. ### Claim 14 (depends on 13) The method of claim 13, wherein determining the boundary conditions tuning characteristics comprises determining unique boundary conditions tuning characteristics for each of the plurality of anatomical locations. ### Claim 15 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, further comprising: storing the boundary conditions tuning characteristics. ### Claim 16 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics comprises determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics that tune the respective boundary conditions to reduce the difference between the computed blood flow characteristic and the invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurement of each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population at a plurality of anatomical locations. ### Claim 17 (depends on 12) The method of claim 12, wherein the boundary conditions tuning characteristics alter parameters for calculating the computed blood flow characteristics. ### Claim 18 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, wherein the patient-specific anatomical model represents boundaries in at least a portion of an aorta and at least a portion of a plurality of coronary arteries emanating from the portion of the aorta. ### Claim 19 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, further comprising, after testing the boundary conditions tuning characteristics: determining that the boundary conditions tuning characteristics do not satisfy an accuracy threshold; and repeating the determining of the boundary conditions tuning characteristics step using at least some of the plurality of patients of the testing population. ### Claim 20 (depends on 11) The method of claim 11, further comprising constructing the patient-specific anatomical model. ### Claim 21 A non-transitory computer readable medium for use on at least one computer system containing computer-executable programming instructions for performing a method for determining cardiovascular information for a patient, the method comprising: retrieving data for a plurality of patients of a general population; dividing the general population into a tuning population and a testing population; retrieving data for each of a plurality of patients of the tuning population, the data including an invasively obtained measurement of a blood flow characteristic for each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population and a blood flow characteristic computed based at least in part on a respective boundary condition for each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population; determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics by iteratively comparing the computed blood flow characteristic for each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population to the invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurement of a respective patient of each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population; testing the boundary conditions tuning characteristics for each of a plurality of patients of the testing population different from the tuning population based on comparisons between non-invasively computed and invasively obtained blood flow characteristic values for each of the plurality of patients in the testing population; using the boundary conditions tuning characteristics and a patient-specific anatomical model representing at least a portion of an anatomy of a patient not in the tuning population or the testing population to compute a patient-specific blood flow characteristic value for the patient not in either the tuning population or the testing population; and outputting the patient-specific anatomical model and the computed patient-specific blood flow characteristic value. ### Claim 22 (depends on 21) The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 21, wherein determining the boundary conditions tuning characteristics comprises determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics that tune respective boundary conditions to reduce a difference between the computed blood flow characteristic and the invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurement of each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population. ### Claim 23 (depends on 22) The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22, wherein the data further includes invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurements at a plurality of anatomical locations and a corresponding computed blood flow characteristic for each of the patients based at least in part on respective boundary condition models at the plurality of anatomical locations. ### Claim 24 (depends on 23) The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 23, wherein determining the boundary conditions tuning characteristics comprises determining unique boundary conditions tuning characteristics for each of the plurality of anatomical locations. ### Claim 25 (depends on 22) The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22, wherein the method further comprises: storing the boundary conditions tuning characteristics. ### Claim 26 (depends on 22) The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22, wherein determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics comprises determining boundary conditions tuning characteristics that tune the respective boundary conditions to reduce the difference between the computed blood flow characteristic and the invasively obtained blood flow characteristic measurement of each of the plurality of patients of the tuning population at a plurality of anatomical locations. ### Claim 27 (depends on 22) The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22, wherein the boundary conditions tuning characteristics alter parameters for calculating the computed blood flow characteristics. ### Claim 28 (depends on 21) The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 21, wherein the patient-specific anatomical model represents boundaries in at least a portion of an aorta and at least a portion of a plurality of coronary arteries emanating from the portion of the aorta. ### Claim 29 (depends on 22) The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22, wherein the method further comprises: determining that the boundary conditions tuning characteristics do not satisfy an accuracy threshold; and repeating the determining of the boundary conditions tuning characteristics step using at least some of the plurality of patients of the testing population. ### Claim 30 (depends on 22) The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 22, wherein the method further comprises constructing the patient-specific anatomical model.