Methods, systems, and computer program products for hierarchical registration between a blood vessel and tissue surface model for a subject and a blood vessel and tissue surface image for the subject

• US 8,233,681 B2
• Filed: 09/26/2005
• Issued: 07/31/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/24/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: University of North Carolina At Chapel Hill (University of North Carolina System)
• Original Assignee: University of North Carolina At Chapel Hill (University of North Carolina System)
• Inventors: Aylward, Stephen, Bullitt, Elizabeth, Jomier, Julien
• Primary Examiner(s): Carter, Aaron W
• Application Number:
  US11/663,661
• Publication Number:
  US 20080247622A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,500 Days
• Field of Search: 382128-132, 600424-427
• US Class Current: 382/128
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2090/364 Correlation of different images or relation of image positions in respect to the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/4245 involving determining the position of the probe, e.g. with respect to an external reference frame or to the patient
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 90/36 Image-producing devices or illumination devices not otherwise provided for
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 40/14 Vascular patterns

Abstract

Methods, systems, and computer program products for hierarchical registration (102) between a blood vessel and tissue surface model (100) for a subject and a blood vessel and tissue surface image for the subject are disclosed. According to one method, hierarchical registration of a vascular model to a vascular image is provided. According to the method, a vascular model is mapped to a target image using a global rigid transformation to produce a global-rigid-transformed model. Piecewise rigid transformations are applied in a hierarchical manner to each vessel tree in the global-rigid-transformed model to perform a piecewise-rigid-transformed model. Piecewise deformable transformations are applied to branches in the vascular tree in the piecewise-transformed-model to produce a piecewise-deformable-transformed model.

Claims

1. A method for hierarchical registration of a blood vessel model to blood vessel image data, the method comprising:

(a) mapping a vascular model for a subject to a target vascular image for the subject using a global rigid transformation;

(b) hierarchically mapping individual vessel branches in the model using piecewise rigid transformations to form a piecewise-rigid-transformed vascular model; and

(c) hierarchically mapping individual vessel branches in the piecewise-rigid-transformed vascular model to the target image using piecewise deformable transformations to form a piecewise-deformably-transformed vascular model.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein mapping a vascular model for a subject to a target image for the subject using a global rigid transformation includes mapping a three dimensional vascular model to the target image.

3. The method of claim 1 wherein hierarchically mapping individual vessel branches in the vascular model to the target image using piecewise rigid transformations includes performing the piecewise rigid transformations beginning from a root of a vascular tree in the vascular model and proceeding to branches of the vascular tree in a hierarchical manner.

4. The method of claim 1 wherein hierarchically mapping individual vessel branches in the piecewise-rigid-transformed vascular model to the target image includes applying the deformable registration beginning at a root of a vascular tree in the piecewise-rigid-transformed vascular model and proceeding to branches of the vascular tree in a hierarchical manner.

5. The method of claim 1 comprising generating the vascular model from vascular image data for the subject.

6. The method of claim 5 wherein generating the vascular model includes generating the vascular model from magnetic resonance (MR) image data.

7. The method of claim 5 wherein generating the vascular model includes generating the vascular model from computerized tomography (CT) image data.

8. The method of claim 1 wherein the target image includes an ultrasound image and wherein the method further comprises using the piecewise-deformably-transformed vascular model to annotate the ultrasound image.

9. A method for hierarchical registration between a blood vessel and tissue surface model for a subject and a blood vessel and tissue surface image for the subject, the method comprising:

(a) generating a blood vessel model and a tissue surface model from a source blood vessel and tissue surface image for a subject;

(b) performing a plurality of hierarchical registrations between the blood vessel model and the tissue surface model and a target blood vessel and tissue surface image for the subject to produce transformations between locations in between locations in the models and locations in the target image; and

(c) determining, based on the transformations in locations, a location of a feature from the source blood vessel and tissue surface image in the transformed blood vessel and tissue surface model.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein performing a plurality of hierarchical registrations includes:

(a) performing a global rigid registration between the vascular and tissue surface models and the target image to form first transformed vascular and tissue surface models;

(b) performing a hierarchical piecewise rigid registration between blood vessels in the first transformed vascular model and the blood vessels in the target image to form a second transformed vascular model;

(c) performing a global rigid registration between the first transformed tissue surface model and a tissue surface image for the subject to form a second transformed tissue surface model;

(d) performing a hierarchical piecewise deformable registration between the second transformed vascular model and the target image to form a third transformed vascular model;

(e) performing a global deformable registration between the second transformed tissue surface model and the target image to form a third transformed tissue surface model;

(f) combining the third transformed vascular model and the third transformed tissue surface model to form a third transformed vascular and tissue surface model; and

(g) performing a deformation field interpolation to transcribe features of interest in the source image to the third transformed vascular and tissue surface model.

11. The method of claim 9 wherein performing the hierarchical registrations includes performing registrations beginning at roots of vascular trees in the vascular model and proceeding to branches of the vascular trees in a hierarchical manner.

12. The method of claim 9 wherein the source image comprises a magnetic resonance (MR) image and the target image comprises an ultrasound image.

13. The method of claim 9 wherein the source image comprises a computerized tomography (CT) image and the target image comprise an ultrasound image.

14. The method of claim 9 comprising continually repeating steps (b) and (c) to update the location of the feature.

15. A system for hierarchical blood vessel and tissue surface model to image registration, the system comprising:

(a) a blood vessel and tissue surface model generator for receiving a source blood vessel and tissue surface image for a subject and generating a vascular model and a tissue surface model for the subject; and

(b) a hierarchical blood vessel and tissue surface model-to-image registration module for receiving as input the vascular model, the tissue surface model, a target blood vessel and tissue surface image, and a feature of interest in the source blood vessel and tissue surface image and for performing hierarchical blood vessel and tissue surface model-to-image registrations to produce a model with a target-image-registered feature of interest.

16. The system of claim 15 wherein the hierarchical blood vessel and tissue surface model-to-image registration module is adapted to perform at least one registration beginning at a root of a vascular tree in the vascular model and proceeding to braches in the vascular tree in a hierarchical manner.

17. The system of claim 15 wherein the hierarchical blood vessel and tissue surface model-to-image registration module is adapted to perform at least one piecewise rigid transformation between the vascular model and the target image.

18. The system of claim 15 wherein the hierarchical blood vessel and tissue surface model-to-image registration module is adapted to perform at least one piecewise deformable transformation between the vascular model and the target image.

19. The system of claim 15 wherein the hierarchical blood vessel and tissue surface module-to-image registration module is adapted to apply a deformation field interpolation to determine a location of the target-image-registered feature of interest.

20. A computer program product comprising computer-executable instructions embodied in a non-transitory computer-readable medium for performing steps comprising:

(a) mapping a vascular model for a subject to a target vascular image for the subject using a global rigid transformation;

(b) hierarchically mapping individual vessel branches in the model using piecewise rigid transformations to form a piecewise-rigid-transformed vascular model; and

(c) hierarchically mapping individual vessel branches in the piecewise-rigid-transformed vascular model to the target image using piecewise deformable transformations to form a piecewise-deformably-transformed vascular model.

21. A computer program product comprising computer-executable instructions embodied in a non-transitory computer-readable medium for performing steps comprising:

(a) generating a blood vessel model and a tissue surface model from a source blood vessel and tissue surface image for a subject;

(b) performing a plurality of hierarchical registrations between the blood vessel model and the tissue surface model and a target blood vessel and tissue surface image for the subject to produce transformations between locations in between locations in the models and locations in the target image; and

(c) determining, based on the transformations in locations, a location of a feature from the source blood vessel and tissue surface image in the transformed blood vessel and tissue surface model.