title: Sensitivity and reproducibility of a new fast 3D segmentation technique for clinical MR-based brain volumetry in multiple sclerosis.
abstract: Fast, reliable and easy-to-use methods to quantify brain atrophy are of increasing importance in clinical studies on neuro-degenerative diseases. Here, ILAB 4, a new volumetry software that uses a fast semi-automated 3D segmentation of thin-slice T1-weighted 3D MR images based on a modified watershed transform and an automatic histogram analysis was evaluated. It provides the cerebral volumes: whole brain, white matter, gray matter and intracranial cavity. Inter- and intra-rater reliability and scan-rescan reproducibility were excellent in measuring whole brain volumes (coefficients of variation below 0.5%) of volunteers and patients. However, gray and white matter volumes were more susceptible to image quality. High accuracy of the absolute volume results (+/-5 ml) were shown by phantom and preparation measurements. Analysis times were 6 min for processing of 128 slices. The proposed technique is reliable and highly suitable for quantitative studies of brain atrophy, e.g., in multiple sclerosis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, St. Josef Hospital, Ruhr University, Gudrunstr. 56, 44791, Bochum, Germany. Carsten.Lukas@ruhr-uni-bochum.de
authors.forename: Carsten
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Lukas
authors.forename: Horst K
authors.initials: HK
authors.lastname: Hahn
authors.forename: Barbara
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Bellenberg
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rexilius
authors.forename: Gebhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Schmid
authors.forename: Sebastian K
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Schimrigk
authors.forename: Horst
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Przuntek
authors.forename: Odo
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Köster
authors.forename: Heinz-Otto
authors.initials: HO
authors.lastname: Peitgen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D009103:Multiple Sclerosis / Q000473:pathology*; D009929:Organ Size; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012986:Software Validation; D013997:Time Factors; D014584:User-Computer Interface