Remote guidance, in the medical context, refers to the supervision or guidance of a medical task, usually a procedure or test, from a remote location. This falls in the realm of real time telemedicine applications. By way of example, a

radiologist Radiology ( ) is the medical discipline that uses medical imaging to diagnose diseases and guide their treatment, within the bodies of humans and other animals. It began with radiography (which is why its name has a root referring to radiatio ...

may guide an

ultrasound Ultrasound is sound waves with frequency, frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing range, hearing. Ultrasound is not different from "normal" (audible) sound in its physical properties, except that humans cannot hea ...

examination from a remote location. As such, the proximate requisite expertise to accomplish a medical task is significantly diminished. In the previous example, a diagnostic quality ultrasound can be accomplished by non-medically trained individuals manipulating an ultrasound device located with the patient under guidance from a remote location. This is an example of

teleradiology Teleradiology is the transmission of radiological patient images, such as x-rays, CTs, and MRIs, from one location to another for the purposes of sharing studies with other radiologists and physicians. Teleradiology is a growth technology given ...

If appropriately configured, the remote guidance can originate from another room or floor in the same building, too as far away as another continent or even planet.

NASA The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding t ...

researchers have successfully demonstrated remote guidance of diagnostic level cardiac

ultrasonography Ultrasound is sound waves with frequencies higher than the upper audible limit of human hearing. Ultrasound is not different from "normal" (audible) sound in its physical properties, except that humans cannot hear it. This limit varies fr ...

using ultrasound on the space station, non-medical astronauts performing the exam as guided by a terrestrially located expert.

Remote diagnostics

Remote diagnostics refers to a real time telemedical application that achieves

diagnostic Diagnosis is the identification of the nature and cause of a certain phenomenon. Diagnosis is used in many different disciplines, with variations in the use of logic, analytics, and experience, to determine " cause and effect". In systems engine ...

level quality and information exchange. In this sense, it refers to an expectation for quality sufficient for making or excluding a

medical diagnosis Medical diagnosis (abbreviated Dx, Dx, or Ds) is the process of determining which disease or condition explains a person's symptoms and signs. It is most often referred to as diagnosis with the medical context being implicit. The information re ...

. In the telemedical context specific to radiologic images these images often are consistent with the

DICOM Digital Imaging and Communications in Medicine (DICOM) is the standard for the communication and management of medical imaging information and related data. DICOM is most commonly used for storing and transmitting medical images enabling the integ ...

standard. Given bandwidth issues universally plaguing the healthcare environment imagery beyond still images and brief video has not yet become standard expectation of care environments or PACS systems. Ultrasound scanning commonly utilized for

abdomen The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...

musculoskeletal The human musculoskeletal system (also known as the human locomotor system, and previously the activity system) is an organ system that gives humans the ability to move using their muscular and skeletal systems. The musculoskeletal system prov ...

pelvis The pelvis (plural pelves or pelvises) is the lower part of the trunk, between the abdomen and the thighs (sometimes also called pelvic region), together with its embedded skeleton (sometimes also called bony pelvis, or pelvic skeleton). The ...

gynecologic Gynaecology or gynecology (see spelling differences) is the area of medicine that involves the treatment of women's diseases, especially those of the reproductive organs. It is often paired with the field of obstetrics, forming the combined are ...

cardiac The heart is a muscular organ in most animals. This organ pumps blood through the blood vessels of the circulatory system. The pumped blood carries oxygen and nutrients to the body, while carrying metabolic waste such as carbon dioxide to t ...

and

vascular The blood vessels are the components of the circulatory system that transport blood throughout the human body. These vessels transport blood cells, nutrients, and oxygen to the tissues of the body. They also take waste and carbon dioxide away f ...

evaluations has shown potential for remote diagnosis only of late. More general

Remote Diagnostics Remote diagnostics is the act of diagnosing a given symptom, issue or problem from a distance. Instead of the subject being co-located with the person or system done diagnostics, with remote diagnostics the subjects can be separated by physical di ...

(RD) refers to detecting which fault or faults are present in a system, body of object, from a distance. Examples of use: aeroplanes, spacecraft, Formula 1 and major assets such as ships, trains etc. In cases where corrective actions are also made, the term 'Remote Diagnostic & Maintenance' is more appropriate.

Technical aspects

While still imagery can be e-mailed and forwarded in a multitude of methods, video product of medical devices has typically not been available for remote interaction. Recent improvements in scanning devices, for example ultrasound machines has facilitated this new capability. The inclusion of the

VGA Video Graphics Array (VGA) is a video display controller and accompanying de facto graphics standard, first introduced with the IBM PS/2 line of computers in 1987, which became ubiquitous in the PC industry within three years. The term can no ...

output gives the opportunity for

frame grabber A frame grabber is an electronic device that captures (i.e., "grabs") individual, digital still frames from an analog video signal or a digital video stream. It is usually employed as a component of a computer vision system, in which video fram ...

devices to stream such outputs to the internet.

References

* see also

Remote diagnostics Remote diagnostics is the act of diagnosing a given symptom, issue or problem from a distance. Instead of the subject being co-located with the person or system done diagnostics, with remote diagnostics the subjects can be separated by physical di ...

for RD in technical systems * https://web.archive.org/web/20110727212003/http://www.remoteguidance.org/laparascopic-surgery/lights-lap-camera-tele-action/ * http://www.gizmag.com/go/5283/ * http://www.sportandtechnology.com/features/0335.html * Froehlich J, Easily capture video from any VGA or DVI device, MacTech Magazine, 2007 {{DEFAULTSORT:Remote Guidance Telemedicine Practice of medicine