Skip to main content

A Minimally-Interactive Watershed Algorithm Designed for Efficient CTA Bone Removal

  • Conference paper
Computer Vision Approaches to Medical Image Analysis (CVAMIA 2006)

Part of the book series: Lecture Notes in Computer Science ((LNIP,volume 4241))

Abstract

We introduce a novel minimally-interactive watershed algorithm that needs no initial parameterization, but lets the user refine the automatic segmentation close to real-time. In contrast to previous proposals, our algorithm encapsulates all time consuming calculation in a processing step executed only once. Thereby, a hierarchical subdivision of the incoming image data is generated. This subdivision serves as a basis for computing automatic segmentation results according to a given multi-dimensional classification scheme as well as for interactive refinement according to local markers. We have successfully applied our algorithm to efficiently removing bone structures from computed tomography angiography data, which is among the very challenging segmentation problems in medical image analysis.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 39.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 54.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  1. Alyassin, A.M., Avinash, G.B.: Semiautomatic bone removal technique from CT angiography data. Med Imaging. In: Proc. SPIE 2005, vol. 4322, pp. 1273–1283 (2001)

    Google Scholar 

  2. Digabel, H., Lantuèjoul, C.: Iterative algorithms. In: Chermant, J.L. (ed.) Proc. 2nd European Symp. Quantitative Analysis of Micro-structures in Material Science, Biology and Medicine, pp. 85–99 (1978)

    Google Scholar 

  3. Fiebich, M., Straus, C.M., Sehgal, V., Renger, B.C., Doi, K., Hoffmann, K.R.: Automatic bone segmentation technique for CT angiographic studies. J. Comput. Assist. Tomogr. 23(1), 155–161 (1999)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Grau, V., Mewes, A.U.J., Alcañiz, M., Kikinis, R., Warfield, S.K.: Improved watershed transform for medical image segmentation using prior information. IEEE Trans. Med. Imaging 23(4), 447–458 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Hahn, H.K.: Morphological Volumetry Theory, Concepts, and Application to Quantitative Medical Imaging. Ph.D. thesis, University of Bremen (2005)

    Google Scholar 

  6. Hahn, H.K., Peitgen, H.-O.: The skull stripping problem in MRI solved by a single 3D watershed transform. In: Delp, S.L., DiGoia, A.M., Jaramaz, B. (eds.) MICCAI 2000. LNCS, vol. 1935, pp. 134–143. Springer, Heidelberg (2000)

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  7. Hahn, H.K., Peitgen, H.-O.: IWT—Interactive Watershed Transform: A hierarchical method for efficient interactive and automated segmentation of multidimensional grayscale images. In: Med. Imaging, Proc. SPIE, vol. 5032, pp. 643–653 (2003)

    Google Scholar 

  8. Kang, Y., Engelke, K., Kalender, W.A.: A new accurate and precise 3-D segmentation method for skeletal structures in volumetric CT data. IEEE Trans. Med. Imaging 22(5), 586–598 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Moore, E.A., Grieve, J.P., Jäger, H.R.: Robust processing of intracranial CT angiograms for 3D volume rendering. Eur. J. Radiol. 11(1), 137–141 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. Mullick, R., Avila, R., Knoplioch, J., Mallya, Y., Platt, J., Senzig, R.: Automatic bone removal for abdomen CTA: A clinical review. In: Proc. RSNA (2002)

    Google Scholar 

  11. Raman, R., Raman, B., Hundt, W., Stucker, D., Napel, S., Rubin, G.D.: Improved speed of bone removal in CT angiography (CTA) using automated targeted morphological separation: Method and evaluation in CTA of lower extremity occlusive disease (LEOD). Radiology 225(P), 647 (2002)

    Google Scholar 

  12. Roerdink, J.B.T.M., Meijster, A.: The watershed transform: Definitions, algorithms, and parallelization strategies. Fundamenta Informaticae 41, 187–228 (2000)

    MATH  MathSciNet  Google Scholar 

  13. Suryanaranayanan, S., Mullick, R., Mallya, Y., Wood, C., McCullough, C., Thielen, K.: Automatic bone removal for head CTA: A preliminary review. In: Proc. RSNA (2003)

    Google Scholar 

  14. van Straten, M., Venema, H.W., Streekstra, G.J., den Heeten, G.J., Majoie, C.B.L.M.: Removal of bone in CT angiography of the cervical arteries by piecewise matched mask bone elimination. Medical Physics 31 (10), 2924–2933 (2004)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Vincent, L., Soille, P.: Watersheds in digital spaces: An efficient algorithm based on immersion simulations. IEEE Trans. Pattern Analysis Machine Intel 13(6), 583–598 (1991)

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2006 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

About this paper

Cite this paper

Hahn, H.K., Wenzel, M.T., Konrad-Verse, O., Peitgen, HO. (2006). A Minimally-Interactive Watershed Algorithm Designed for Efficient CTA Bone Removal. In: Beichel, R.R., Sonka, M. (eds) Computer Vision Approaches to Medical Image Analysis. CVAMIA 2006. Lecture Notes in Computer Science, vol 4241. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/11889762_16

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/11889762_16

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-46257-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-46258-3

  • eBook Packages: Computer ScienceComputer Science (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics