A comprehensive study of stent visualization enhancement in X-ray images by image processing means

Vincent Bismuth (1, 2) , Régis Vaillant (2) , François Funck (3) , Niels Guillard (3) , Laurent Najman (1)

1 LIGM - Laboratoire d'Informatique Gaspard-Monge
2 GE Healthcare - General Electric Medical Systems [Buc]
3 Centre Hospitalier René Dubos [Pontoise]

In this work we propose a comprehensive study of Digital Stent Enhancement (DSE), from the analysis of requirements to the validation of the proposed solution. First, we derive the stent visualization requirements in the context of the clinical application and workflow. Then, we propose a DSE algorithm combining automatic detection, tracking, registration and contrast enhancement. The most original parts of our solution: landmark segmentation and non-linear image registration are detailed. Finally, we validate the algorithm on a large number of synthetic and clinical cases. Performance is characterized in terms of image quality, automation, and execution time. This work is, to the best of our knowledge, the first comprehensive article on DSE, covering problem statement, proposed solution, and validation strategies.

Domaines: Informatique et langage [cs.CL]

Vincent Bismuth, Régis Vaillant, François Funck, Niels Guillard, Laurent Najman. A comprehensive study of stent visualization enhancement in X-ray images by image processing means. Medical Image Analysis, 2011, 15 (4), pp.565-576. ⟨hal-00622290⟩