Mosaicking and enhancement of slit lamp biomicroscopic fundus images

Aims-To process video slit lamp biomicroscopic fundus image sequences in or der to generate wide field, high quality fundus image montages which might be suitable for photodocumentation. Methods-Slit lamp biomicroscopic fundus examination was performed on human volunteers with a contact or non-contact lens. A stock, charge coupled devi ce camera permitted image capture and storage of the image sequence at 30 f rames per second. Acquisition time was approximately 30 seconds. Individual slit lamp biomicroscope fundus image frames were aligned and blended with custom developed software. Results-The developed algorithms allowed for highly accurate alignment and blending of partially overlapping slit lamp biomicroscopic fundus images to generate a seamless, high quality, wide field montage. Conclusions-Video image acquisition and processing algorithms allow for mos aicking and enhancement of slit lamp biomicroscopic fundus images. The impr oved quality and wide field of view may confer suitability for inexpensive, real time photodocumentation of disc and macular abnormalities.