Object-Relational Data Model Assessment for Medical Imaging Repositories Content

Search

Baquiran,Velorie D.
School of Electronics, Electrical and Computer Engineering
Mapua Institute of Technology
Muralla St., Intramuros, Manila, Philippines
veldbaquiran@gmail.com

Abstract- As part of the progress in Discussed in this paper, the limitations of

medical technology, data or information
repositories of medical images
contributed greatly regarding medical
understanding. These records are being
used together with open-source software
with different platforms in assisting
medical institutions playing a vital role
during medical decisions and treatment
procedures. Through propagation of
digital modalities, medical images data
grew leading to the need of having a
bigger repository for safe-keeping that
would be able to accommodate more with
acceptable performance. Different
database management systems supports
each data model in order to fully grasp
the its own structures. These databases
includes the use of Picture Archiving and
Communication System (PACS)-used in
order to take in the medical images with
Big Data usage set-ups and PostgreSQL
for the object-relational database
management, as well as the Dicoogle
open source software and extensions.
For this paper, the possible use of Object-
Relational Data Model would be explored
in enhancing the process of query and
retrieval of medical images in compliant
with the medical imaging standards.
the proposed Data Model.
Keywords- Medical Imaging, Object-
Relational Data Model
1. Introduction
Variety of data models are being used
in medical imaging practices throughout
the years. Medical imaging processes big
data due to its different resolutions in
support for more effective medical
services and practices in clinical analysis.
[1] Laboratories that performs digital
imaging deals with bulks of data which
includes the medical data of a person as it
increases over a period of time. Such data
aids medical doctors in decision-making
regarding the patients diagnosis. In order
to support these data, advanced medical
imaging equipment has been propagated.
Therefore medical repositories data opt to
have a more flexible data model and
management systems to be used for
attaining a better performance. Necessary
hardware, software, distribution, storage
and analysis of medical images have to be
taken into consideration which have been
answered with the use of PACS. The
object-relational data will then use a novel
likelihood-ratio of comparison for
probabilistic models.[2]
One of the main data models used for
data that are structured is the object-
relational data model wherein developers
integrates databases with their data types
and methods. By providing an addition of
a newer and extensive object storage
capability, a field containing a data with
specific attributes would be grouped
together for easier database management.
By focusing on the optimization of
querying services and targeting PACS
content discovery services a bigger storage
for medical images could be allowed.[1]
The DICOM standard (Digital Imaging
and Communications in Medicine) was
created in order to properly handle the
medical images between various devices
and vendors.
Relational Database Management
System (RDMS) has been used in PACS in
handling repositories. NoSQL databases
are not properly exploited to its full
capabilities with regards to storage
characteristics. Attributes that are
characterized by name, data type and
domain sets values for parameters. As the
rate of data production increases, an
approach to where a single unified
network which allows collaborative
situation should be presented to
encapsulate the medical images as well as
to maintain a proper PACS solution with
better performance database system.
With the use of an existing dataset,
utilization of the given variables and
equations from previous studies that would
be incorporated for this paper,
determination whether object-relational
data model would be fitting to be
implemented with Medical Imaging
Content repositories searching that would
provide a more accurate result.
In this article, implementation of a
newer data model-which is the object-
relational data model- would be focused
on a bigger volume for medical images
storage with an acceptable quality of
service will be allowed upon enhancement
of the data model.
2. Background
2.1 OBJECT-RELATIONAL DATA
MODEL
Object-Relational Model provides a
relational database management which is
essentially a relational model where users
integrate object-oriented features. It has
greater power and flexibility with better
performance, and greater data integrity
than the previous models. Data in this
model is conceptually viewed as an
orderly arrangement of data into a relation
but with a featured contained object.
Values are scalar, therefore at any given
position in the relation there would only be
one value per se. it was developed in order
to meet the objective of combining
concepts or relational data model together
with object-oriented programming style.
Vendors nowadays implement OR
concepts into their relational databases as
the ISO integrated it into the new SQL
standard referred to as SQL3 or SQL99.
OR data model offers an extended
capability of database servers wherein new
data types, as well as user-defined patterns
could be defined. One or more current
existing data types could be combined into
complex types in order to attain more
flexibility in data organization of
structures composing of columns and
tables. As the user is able to define objects
or types and tables with properties of other
objects, addition of new properties that are
specific to the said object that has been
defined is also made possible.
Incorporation of such features aids in
managing conventional fielded data, more
complex objects and others. Such
approach takes on the robust operation and
performance management as developers
can work with more familiar tabular
structures and data definition that hold
more power and greater capabilities.
Query and procedural languages and the
call interfaces that are used in object
relational database management systems
are familiar for the information system
developer.
In order to properly support the
classic features of an object oriented
programming, the relational model need to
be modified drastically. Thus creating
specific characteristics only for the OR
model such as having Base Data type
extension, support on complex objects,
inheritance and rule systems. As a result,
functionality and performance for this
model are optimized giving it a massive
scalability property.[2]
But to be able to fully implement
its features and have its advantages, both
object-oriented and relational concepts
should be understood. There are also cases
wherein upon implementation of OR
concepts, object inheritance was not
supported.
2.2 Database Management Systems
and Open Sources
2.2.1 Dicoogle
Dicoogle is an open source widely
used in setting up experimental
environments. With the use of its plugins
and A Software Develeopment Kit (SDK)
for modules wherein developers are
allowed to work with their deployment of
functionalities. Plugins such as storage,
indexing, query and interfaces helps in
developing performance capabilities of the
database system itself.
Indexing plugins organize data for
an easier access for the process of data
retrieval and storage. This plugin works as
the index tasks are called upon arrival of
new DICOM images for storage to the
repositories. After the execution, reports
would be sent back to Dicoogle regarding
the elapsed time or the number of the files
that were indexed or its errors. The Query
plugins deals with the content search and
retrieval. Upon request, queries are
converted into an internal query language
that would then be forwarded to the
plugins[1].
2.2.2 PostgreSQL
PostgreSQl is another Open source
Relational Database Management System.
It comes with the RDBMS together with
other free of charge open sources that are
used in server/client model
implementation that which supports the
standard language of ANSI:SQL2011
database. The client and server are
separated in PostgreSQL resulting to the
clients library to become lighter[5]. It is
ACID compliant which has full support of
various keys, trigger, etc. and can store
procedures in multiple language.
PostgreSQLs features includes point in
time recover, tablespaces, asynchronous
replication, nested transactions, online
backups, complex query optimizer, etc.
Multibyte character encoding is also
supported by this open source database.
Due to its scalability, developer friendly
environment wherein procedures are run
with the use of various programming
languages- and its customizations,
PostgreSQL is used for object-relational
database system.
2.3 Related Works
With newer innovations and new
technologies that are being used in the
medical field, medical imaging has been
improving. Medical imaging repositories
performance are given focus of several
studies in order to be able to attain the
ideal operation of such technologies. With
newer technologies, new strategies and
bigger content storage are necessary and
were targeted. Interaction of different
control systems and logic were also
incorporated to the data models in
quantifying relationship of the attributes of
the parameters in the database used.
Rascovsky et al, developed a solution
in order to support a medical imaging
archive which is a CouchDB based
solution. With their study, CouchDB is
highly suitable in the process of storing,
retrieving and querying of DICOM files.
Document-based databases have said to
not have limitation of the RDBMS
databases.
Langer et al. showed that cloud
computing helps solve problems faced by
medical imaging researchers that are in
line in data mining and processing of
DICOM data[1].
There are also other existing
researches which targeted different
importance of optimizing the performance
of PACS functions and operations with
distributed environments. Others proposed
mechanisms with an efficient cache
technology that targets the delays in
medical imaging retrieval.
Alves et al. made use of the relational
data model in order to optimize the
processes of storage, discovery and
distribution of medical imaging data. By
using large datasets of medical images,
they were able to set guidelines for the
correct usage of analyzed databases.
3. Methods
This particular article aims to assess
whether object-relational data model
would be a better alternative in medical
imaging content search for relational data
model as conducted previously by other
researchers. Dicoogle was used by the
chosen references and it is due to its
feature of having a Software Development
Kit (SDK) in order to implement a variety
of plugins. It provides storage, index for
allowing indexing of metadata information
of DICOM files and a query which allows
searching over the information system and
retrieval or search results. With these
features, developing new PACS
repositories was simplified.
First datasets were gathered from a
relational database and an object-relational
database produced by the use of Dicoogle
of the various previous researches.
Indexing plugins and query plugins were
developed as it was given focus on for the
medical imaging content search. The
process of how the data flows with these
different data models varied. Relational
Database Model made use of specific keys
that were then used to relate the medical
images to keywords that lead to the needed
data. But there were errors contained in
files leading to creating the secondary
keys. Object-Relational Mapping was used
wherein data were sorted in a hierarchical
model that were then retrieved from an
already instantiated structure[1]. Indexes
were then created for an easier access a
certain row in lookup tables-therefore
leading to a faster retrieval of data. In
order to insert queries, the implementation
of relational database it made use of a
translation to SQL.
On the other database study, due to the
flexibility of an OR model different
methods and datasets were included.
Dicoogle was also used for indexing and it
was mixed with different algorithm that
employs an iterative deepening strategy.
As a set of parameter values represent a
class-level association and another
different set to a new association a single
feature component could be produced
upon comparing two parametrized models.
The features acquired were then treated as
independent but with a correlation
component that measures the deviation in
the features mutual information[2].
4. Results and Discussion
Comparing both datasets and the use of
both models and how the data flows
through the system resulted into the
realization of the connection between the
two data models. The process of
acquisitions was mostly the same due to
the use of Dicoogle and its plugins.
Dicoogle played the most important role
for both data models wherein the medical
images are being processed for storage,
indexing and retrieval. The use of
Relational Data Model provided the
dataset verifying that when compared to a
NoSQL database solution, performance
was better. But since it uses An OR
Mapping, it can be said that it has not yet
shown the best possible solution there is.
An Object-Relational Data Model
make use of queries can be manipulated
collectively and includes both the
advantages of better performance of a
relational data model and an object-
oriented data model. The developer or
vendors are able to provide a more
structured dataset for a better performing
system due to the data models flexibility.
5. Conclusion
Relational Data Model already
provides a great database model in
supporting medical imaging services with
controlled experiments. It can be used in
setting guidelines with regards to the
proper usage of databases with big data
medical imaging developments. The use of
Object-Relational Model increases the
performance of the system by having a
more structured hierarchy of datasets. By
having a link or relation of a key to a
certain object, it shows the possible
relations with a different class. A data
could then be managed collectively
according to their parameters that then
would lead to a single feature component.
Therefore harnessing a faster way in
obtaining medical imaging content.
Having an object that is related to another
object through a mutual information while
having a more manageable system would
simplify the process per se due to its
scalability.
In conclusion, Object-Relational Data
Model could be used as an alternative for
Relational Data Model in Medical Imaging
content search that might provide more
power to the system and a bigger storage
due to its extensions and a better support
for complex objects.
It is recommended that further study
for the use of the Object-Relational Data
Model in medical imaging repository
search should be done due to its
complexity and increase in cost. A
different database should also be done
alongside with a Relational Data Model to
further verify the feasibility of using an
OR Data Model for medical imaging for
future references.
Acknowledgements
This paper would not be pushed
through without the supervision of my
professor Engr. Jaye Balbin of Mapua
Institute of Technology, under the Faculty
of School of Electronics, Electrical and
Computer Engineering.
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