Integrating automatic and interactive methods for coronary artery segmentation: let the PACS workstation think ahead.
OBJECTIVE
To present newly developed software that can provide fast coronary artery segmentation and accurate centerline extraction for later lesion visualization and quantitative measurement while minimizing user interaction.


METHODS
Previously reported fully automatic and interactive methods for coronary artery extraction were optimized and integrated into a user-friendly workflow. The user's waiting time is saved by running the non-supervised coronary artery segmentation and centerline tracking in the background as soon as the images are received. When the user opens the data, the software provides an intuitive interactive analysis environment.


RESULTS
The average overlap between the centerline created in our software and the reference standard was 96.0%. The average distance between them was 0.38 mm. The automatic procedure runs for 1.4-2.5 min as a single-thread application in the background. Interactive processing takes 3 min in average.


CONCLUSIONS
In preliminary experiments, the software achieved higher efficiency than the former interactive method, and reasonable accuracy compared to manual vessel extraction.
Wang
Chunliang
C
Department of Radiology (IMH), Linköping University, Linköping, Sweden. chunliang.wang@liu.se
Smedby
Orjan
O
D017023:Coronary Angiography / Q000379:methods*; D003327:Coronary Disease / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D003331:Coronary Vessels / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional; D010363:Pattern Recognition, Automated; D011857:Radiographic Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation*; D011873:Radiology Information Systems; D012984:Software; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed / Q000379:methods*; D014584:User-Computer Interface