Computing myocardial motion in 4-dimensional echocardiography.
We describe a novel method for computing dense 3D myocardial motion with high accuracy in four-dimensional (4D) echocardiography (3 dimensions spatial plus time). The method is based on a classic variational optical flow technique but exploits modern developments in optical flow research to utilize the full capabilities of 4D echocardiography. Using a variety of metrics, we present an in-depth performance evaluation of the method on synthetic, phantom, and intraoperative 4D transesophageal echocardiographic data. When compared with state-of-the-art optical flow and speckle tracking techniques currently found in 4D echocardiography, the method we present shows notable improvements in error rates. We believe the performance improvements shown can have a positive impact when the method is used as input for various applications, such as strain computation, biomechanical modeling, and automated diagnostics.
Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, Laurel, MD, USA.
Ryan
R
Mukherjee
Chad
C
Sprouse
Aurélio
A
Pinheiro
Theodore
T
Abraham
Philippe
P
Burlina
D000465:Algorithms; D055424:Cardiac-Gated Imaging Techniques / Q000379:methods*; D019560:Echocardiography, Three-Dimensional / Q000379:methods*; D006321:Heart / Q000503:physiopathology*; D006801:Humans; D007089:Image Enhancement / Q000379:methods; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D009068:Movement; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity