Wahle A, Wellnhofer E, Mugaragu I, Sauer HU, Oswald H, Fleck E:


Assessment of Diffuse Coronary Artery Disease by Quantitative Analysis of Coronary Morphology based upon 3-D Reconstruction from Biplane Angiograms.

Transactions on Medical Imaging, IEEE Press

Volume 14, Number 2, Page 230-241, June 1995

Assessment of diffuse coronary artery diseases by correlations on logarithmic scales; detailed presentation of contour generation, geometry analysis, and the use of hierarchical models for statistical evaluations (Images) (Links)

Abstract: Quantitative evaluations on coronary vessel systems are of increasing importance in cardio-vascular diagnosis, therapy planning and surgical verification. Whereas local evaluations, such as stenosis analysis, are already available with sufficient accuracy, global evaluations of vessel segments or vessel subsystems are not yet common.

Especially for the diagnosis of diffuse coronary artery diseases, we combined a 3-D reconstruction system operating on biplane angiograms with a length/volume calculation. The 3-D reconstruction results in a 3-D model of the coronary vessel system, consisting of the vessel skeleton and a discrete number of contours. To obtain an utmost accurate model, we focussed on exact geometry determination. Several algorithms for calculating missing geometric parameters and correcting remaining geometry errors were implemented and verified. The length/volume evaluation can be performed either on single vessel segments, on a set of segments, or on subtrees.

A volume model based on generalized elliptical conic sections is created for the selected segments. Volumes and lengths (measured along the vessel course) of those elements are summed up. In this way, the morphological parameters of a vessel subsystem can be set in relation to the parameters of the proximal segment supplying it. These relations allow objective assessments of diffuse coronary artery diseases.