Rg. Aarnink et al., A PRACTICAL CLINICAL METHOD FOR CONTOUR DETERMINATION IN ULTRASONOGRAPHIC PROSTATE IMAGES, Ultrasound in medicine & biology, 20(8), 1994, pp. 705-717
Citations number
29
Categorie Soggetti
Radiology,Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging",Acoustics
This paper describes a practical method for automated determination of
the contour of the prostate in ultrasonographic images. In this metho
d, we use specific edge detection techniques, based on nonlinear Lapla
ce filtering. Possible edges are located at zero-crossings of the seco
nd derivative of the image. The strength of the edge is reflected by t
he value of the gradient of the image at that location. Combining the
information about location and strength, an edge intensity image is co
nstructed from the initial ultrasonographic image. In our method, edge
enhancement techniques are performed on the edge intensity image. Edg
es that actually represent a boundary are selected and linked: interpo
lation techniques are used to fill the gaps between detected boundary
edges. The method for contour determination in ultrasonographic images
is used for accurate volume measurements in an everyday clinical envi
ronment. Its computer implementation is fast, accurate (mean differenc
e within 6% of exact volume) and easy to use.