title: Intensity non-uniformity correction in MRI: existing methods and their validation.
abstract: Magnetic resonance imaging is a popular and powerful non-invasive imaging technique. Automated analysis has become mandatory to efficiently cope with the large amount of data generated using this modality. However, several artifacts, such as intensity non-uniformity, can degrade the quality of acquired data. Intensity non-uniformity consists in anatomically irrelevant intensity variation throughout data. It can be induced by the choice of the radio-frequency coil, the acquisition pulse sequence and by the nature and geometry of the sample itself. Numerous methods have been proposed to correct this artifact. In this paper, we propose an overview of existing methods. We first sort them according to their location in the acquisition/processing pipeline. Sorting is then refined based on the assumptions those methods rely on. Next, we present the validation protocols used to evaluate these different correction schemes both from a qualitative and a quantitative point of view. Finally, availability and usability of the presented methods is discussed.
authors.affiliation: CREATIS, UMR CNRS 5515, INSERM U 630, INSA Lyon, Bât. Blaise Pascal, 69621 Villeurbanne Cedex, France. boubakeur.belaroussi@creatis.insa-lyon.fr
authors.forename: Boubakeur
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Belaroussi
authors.forename: Julien
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Milles
authors.forename: Sabin
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Carme
authors.forename: Yue Min
authors.initials: YM
authors.lastname: Zhu
authors.forename: Hugues
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Benoit-Cattin
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D016477:Artifacts; D001185:Artificial Intelligence; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods*; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional / Q000379:methods*; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D010363:Pattern Recognition, Automated / Q000379:methods*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity