Medical image processing apparatus and information retrieval apparatus

A medical image processing apparatus comprising:

• a display;
• a data memory that stores medical data associated with attributes data represented as one or a plurality of unit of data;
• circuitry implementing
• a data-list-display controller that associates a data list presenting the attributes data in a list with position information on the display, causing the display to display the data list,
• a cursor controller that causes the display to display a cursor and that, upon receiving an instruction, changes the position at which the cursor is displayed and outputs the position information thereof,
• an attributes-data analyzer that identifies units of data within the attributes data based on the position information,
• wherein the circuitry further implements
• an operation-details analyzer that, in response to a change of the position information, detects the direction of movement of the cursor in either a first direction along a predetermined first axis or a second direction opposite to the first direction, as well as the amount of movement of the cursor along the first axis,
• a keyword generator that, in conjunction with changes in the position information, selects a range of units of data within the attributes data and generates a retrieval key based on the units of data corresponding to the selected range, and
• a retriever that searches the data memory using the retrieval key,
• wherein the attributes-data analyzer receives the position information, identifies the attributes data corresponding to the position information from within the data list as operation object data, and divides the operation object data into the units of data,
• when the amount of movement in the first direction is shorter than a predetermined distance, the keyword generator generates a retrieval key using only head data composed of the unit of data positioned at a beginning of the operation object data, and each time the amount of movement in a first direction increases by the equivalent of the first unit distance, the keyword generator extracts plural units of data sequentially from the head data and combines the extracted plural units of data which include the head data to generate a new retrieval key, and
• wherein the data-list-display controller, based on the new retrieval key, updates and displays the data list.