Ein Programmsystem zur Automatischen Auswertung und Befundung von Elektronystagmogrammen

Abstract

The movements of the eye are recorded with an eight-channel Siemens Mingograph. The corresponding analog data are sampled, a-d-converted and continuously written on a magnetic tape by means of a PDP 8 computer. Digital data analysis is done on a PDP 10 computer which holds the programs for analysis and interpretation after reading the tape. The average time for an electronystagmographical examination is 35 minutes. The sample rate is one hundred per second resulting in 1,600,000 digital data for one examination which are processed by the programs.

The program attempts an automatic analysis with output on the line printer in the classical form of neurophysiological reports: description, conclusion and interpretation. If the attempt fails, the system prints a message on the console writer. The user now has the possibility of typing in his own interpretation of the electronystagmogram. In this case, the output of the program is: description, conclusion and user’s own interpretations. 400 electronystagmograms were analysed both in conventional and in automatic mode. 87% (348) of all examinations could be interpreted automatically. In 13% C52) the program asked for typing the interpretation by the user. 302 of the 348 automatically found results accorded with the results found in the conventional manner. The steps of the program, the subroutines and the reasons for the difference between the results obtained automatically or conventionally are discussed in the paper.

In conclusion, the described program system is not an “absolutely reliable diagnostician”, but in most cases it is a good aid in daily clinical work.