Computerized quantification of structures within ovarian gusts using ultrasound images

Ovarian cysts are a common type of ovarian mass, The morphology of cysts, a s it appears in ultrasound images, is currently used for classification of ovarian pathologies, However, this classification process is based on human interpretation of the sonographic image. In this article, a semiautomatic algorithm for the quantification of ovarian cysts is presented. This algori thm categorizes the structures within a cyst and extracts their quantitativ e geometric properties (width, characteristic diameter), To assess the vali dity of the technique, its performance was compared to human classification and manual measurements made by an expert. The results show a good match b etween automatic evaluations made by a computer and those of an experienced observer, indicating a potential for clinical use. (C) 1999 World Federati on for Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology.