IEEE transactions on medical imaging
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IEEE Trans Med Imaging · Aug 1999
Nonrigid registration using free-form deformations: application to breast MR images.
In this paper we present a new approach for the nonrigid registration of contrast-enhanced breast MRI. A hierarchical transformation model of the motion of the breast has been developed. The global motion of the breast is modeled by an affine transformation while the local breast motion is described by a free-form deformation (FFD) based on B-splines. ⋯ The algorithm has been applied to the fully automated registration of three-dimensional (3-D) breast MRI in volunteers and patients. In particular, we have compared the results of the proposed nonrigid registration algorithm to those obtained using rigid and affine registration techniques. The results clearly indicate that the nonrigid registration algorithm is much better able to recover the motion and deformation of the breast than rigid or affine registration algorithms.
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IEEE Trans Med Imaging · Feb 1999
Comparative StudyActivation detection in functional MRI using subspace modeling and maximum likelihood estimation.
A statistical method for detecting activated pixels in functional MRI (fMIRI) data is presented. In this method, the fMRI time series measured at each pixel is modeled as the sum of a response signal which arises due to the experimentally controlled activation-baseline pattern, a nuisance component representing effects of no interest, and Gaussian white noise. For periodic activation-baseline patterns, the response signal is modeled by a truncated Fourier series with a known fundamental frequency but unknown Fourier coefficients. ⋯ The maximal invariant statistic used in this test has an F distribution. The theoretical F distribution under the null hypothesis strongly concurred with the experimental frequency distribution obtained by performing null experiments in which the subjects did not perform any activation task. Application of the theory to motor activation and visual stimulation fMRI studies is presented.
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IEEE Trans Med Imaging · Oct 1998
Methods for providing probe position and temperature information on MR images during interventional procedures.
Interventional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can be defined as the use of MR images for guiding and monitoring interventional procedures (e.g., biopsy, drainage) or minimally invasive therapy (e.g., thermal ablation). This work describes the development of a prototype graphical user interface and the appropriate software methods to accurately overlay a representation of a rigid interventional device [e.g., biopsy needle, radio-frequency (RF) probe] onto an MR image given only the probe's spatial position and orientation as determined from a three-dimensional (3-D) localizer used for interactive scan plane definition. ⋯ Further, this paper describes the design and implementation of a method to facilitate the monitoring of thermal ablation procedures by displaying and overlaying temperature maps from temperature sensitive MR acquisitions. These methods provide rapid graphical updates of probe position and temperature changes to aid the physician during the actual interventional MRI procedures without altering the usual operation of the MR imager.
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IEEE Trans Med Imaging · Aug 1998
Speckle reduction and contrast enhancement of echocardiograms via multiscale nonlinear processing.
This paper presents an algorithm for speckle reduction and contrast enhancement of echocardiographic images. Within a framework of multiscale wavelet analysis, we apply wavelet shrinkage techniques to eliminate noise while preserving the sharpness of salient features. In addition, nonlinear processing of feature energy is carried out to enhance contrast within local structures and along object boundaries. ⋯ Our approach for speckle reduction and contrast enhancement was shown to be less affected by pseudo-Gibbs phenomena. We show experimentally that this technique produced superior results both qualitatively and quantitatively when compared to results obtained from existing denoising methods alone. A study using a database of clinical echocardiographic images suggests that such denoising and enhancement may improve the overall consistency of expert observers to manually defined borders.
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The new therapeutic method of scotoma-based photocoagulation (SBP) developed at the Vienna Eye Clinic for diagnosis and treatment of age-related macular degeneration requires retinal maps from scanning laser ophthalmoscope images. This paper describes in detail all necessary image analysis steps for map generation. ⋯ The map required for the SBP treatment can be reliably extracted in all cases. Thus, algorithms presented in this paper should be directly applicable in daily clinical routine without major modifications.