title: Automated morphometry of coronary arteries with digital image analysis of intravascular ultrasound.
abstract: We designed and tested digital image processing strategies to perform fully automated segmentation of luminal and medial-adventitial boundaries in intravascular ultrasound images of human coronary arteries. Automated segmentation is an essential tool for advanced techniques of clinical visualization and quantitative measurement. Vascular compliance measurements and three-dimensional reconstructions are demonstrated as examples of such applications. Digital image processing was performed in three phases: (1) preprocessing, including a polar transform, local contrast enhancement, and speckle noise filtering; (2) segmentation, involving radial scanning, region growing, or cost-function minimization techniques; and (3) postprocessing, involving dropout filtering and outline smoothing. Cross-sectional areas were compared with manual tracings from experienced operators and showed good agreement. The algorithm bias ranged from -0.34 to 1.18 mm2; interclass and intraclass correlation coefficients ranged from 0.83 to 0.94. The designed techniques currently allow fully automated segmentation without operator interaction of the luminal and, if present, medial-adventitial boundary.
authors.affiliation: Department of Biomedical Engineering, Research Institute, The Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Ohio 44195, USA.
authors.forename: D S
authors.initials: DS
authors.lastname: Meier
authors.forename: R M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Cothren
authors.forename: D G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Vince
authors.forename: J F
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Cornhill
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000465:Algorithms; D015982:Bias; D002311:Cardiomyopathy, Dilated / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D003238:Connective Tissue / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology; D004547:Elastic Tissue / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D004548:Elasticity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D017202:Myocardial Ischemia / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted; D017540:Tunica Media / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000473:pathology; D018084:Ultrasonography, Interventional