Windows Phone 7 used in virtual colonoscopy case study

Joe Microsoft has been pretty eager to get into the healthcare space, recently launching HealthVault, a secure cloud storage solution for medical data.

In the above case study they use this storage solution, their Azure cloud computing environment, and a variety of other outside technologies to create virtual 3D images of colonoscopy, taken the easy way, via CT scan.

Joe Engalan, Director of Development at Vectorform, demonstrates a proof-of-concept 3-D viewer for Windows Phone 7 devices and PCs and slate PCs running Windows 7. The virtual colonoscopy viewer supports a high-performance colon cancer screening process, a collaboration between Vectorform, Microsoft, Intel, and the Massachusetts General Hospital. Data from CT scans of a patient’s abdomen is sent to a Windows Azure service that uses high-performance computing technology to create a 3-D image that is stored in the patient’s record in Microsoft HealthVault. Using a volume-rendering engine provided by Microsoft Research, technicians can stream an accurate 3-D image of the colon to the virtual colonoscopy viewer, where diagnosticians can view lifelike images, identify and examine features, and easily navigate through the virtual space with multitouch natural user interface technology.

Hopefully such a solution will come to the market rather rapidly, making that visit to the doctor for screening much more comfortable.

Via Microsoft.com