System and method for automatic determination of a Region Of Interest within an image
First Claim
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1. A method for defining a Region Of Interest (ROI) of a carotid artery comprising:
- providing at least one image including a portion of the carotid artery;
slicing the image into vertical slices;
selecting a stripe which corresponds to the Common Carotid Artery (CCA), within each of the slices;
computing a size of each selected stripe;
comparing the sizes of the selected stripes;
identifying a base of a bulb of the carotid artery as corresponding to the stripe having at least a minimum increase in size compared to stripes in lower slices; and
positioning the ROI below the base of the bulb.
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Abstract
A system and method for automated image analysis selects a Region Of Interest (ROI) within a frame, suitable for subsequent Quantitative Intima Media Thickness (QIMT) analysis. Presently, a time consuming manual analysis by a highly trained technician is required to select the ROI within the frame for subsequent automated analysis. The automated image analysis provides an immediate and accurate identification of the ROI within the selected frame. In one embodiment, the automated image quality analysis may be directed to an ultrasound image of the carotid artery.
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Citations
29 Claims
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1. A method for defining a Region Of Interest (ROI) of a carotid artery comprising:
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providing at least one image including a portion of the carotid artery;
slicing the image into vertical slices;
selecting a stripe which corresponds to the Common Carotid Artery (CCA), within each of the slices;
computing a size of each selected stripe;
comparing the sizes of the selected stripes;
identifying a base of a bulb of the carotid artery as corresponding to the stripe having at least a minimum increase in size compared to stripes in lower slices; and
positioning the ROI below the base of the bulb. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 17)
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- 8. The method of claim I wherein comparing the sizes of the selected stripes comprises comparing averages of the sizes of the selected stripes of consecutive slices to averages of the sizes of the selected stripes of lower consecutive slices.
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19. A method for determining a Region Of Interest (ROI) for subsequent Intima Media Thickness (IMT) analysis, the method comprising:
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providing at least one digital frame of a portion of a carotid artery, wherein the frame includes at least one of a set consisting of a bulb of the carotid artery and a bifurcation of the carotid artery;
automatically processing the frame to identify the ROI in the frame, the automatically processing comprising at least one of the set consisting of;
determining the ROI by detecting a bifurcation of the carotid artery, the determining comprising;
slicing the frame into vertical slices;
automatically comparing at least one of the vertical slices to at least one other of the vertical slices to find the bifurcation of the carotid artery;
determining the ROI horizontal extent to range from approximately 1.75 cm below the bifurcation to approximately 2.25 cm below the bifurcation;
identifying the highest point of a far wall segment of the carotid artery within the ROI horizontal extent; and
determining the ROI vertical extent to range from approximately 0.3 cm above the highest point to approximately 0.2 cm below the highest point; and
determining the ROI by detecting a bulb of the carotid artery, the determining comprising;
slicing the frame into vertical slices;
automatically comparing at least one of the vertical slices to at least one other of the vertical slices to find the bulb of the carotid artery;
determining the ROI horizontal extent to range from approximately 1.0 cm below the bulb to approximately 1.5 cm below the bulb;
identifying the highest point of a far wall segment of the carotid artery within the ROI horizontal extent; and
determining the ROI vertical extent to range from approximately 0.3 cm above the highest point to approximately 0.2 cm below the highest point; and
determining the ROI by pattern-matching a portion of the frame to a previous ROI having a previous horizontal extent and a previous vertical extent;
the determining comprising;
determining an expanded ROI horizontal extent to be the previous horizontal extent expanded horizontally by a factor of approximately 1.2;
determining an expanded ROI vertical extent to be the previous vertical extent expanded vertically by a factor of approximately 1.2;
performing an automatic pattern match comparing the previous ROI to the region defined by the expanded ROI horizontal extent and the expanded ROI vertical extent; and
determining the ROI based on the highest correlation of the automatic pattern match.
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20. (canceled)
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21. A method for defining a Region Of Interest (ROI) of the carotid artery, comprising:
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providing at least one image of a portion of the carotid artery;
slicing the image into vertical slices;
comparing at least one of the vertical slices to at least one other of the vertical slices to find a bifurcation of the carotid artery; and
positioning the ROI below the bifurcation. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29)
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Specification