Some Statistical Considerations on Window Width and Matching Stability of Images.

In stereo matching of images, sample cross-covariances are used commonly as a criterion for deciding whether matched points are truly conjugate. Hereupon window width is a serious parameters to dominate matching stability. This paper argues about relation of matching stability with window width in terms of statistical behavior of sample covariances. For simple circumstances of analysis auto-covariances of a single image are considered instead of cross-covariances of stereo ones. First the mean and variance of sample auto-covariances are derived with parameters, window width and positional lag. Secondly they are evaluated from the correlation function estimated on an aerial image under the assumption of ergodicity to observe how they vary according as two parameters vary. From this result a variation factor is proved usefull to estimate appropriate window width

Rectification of Digitized Aerial Photographic Image

A practical example of digital rectification of tilted photographs using a drum scanning micro densitometer and general purpose computers is depicted. The present research covers rectification of projective distorsions, occuring when the camera axis is not truly vertical, and affine distorsions due to curvature of a drum of a scanner. For this purpose, fundamental mathematical expressions were derived. And some pixel interpolation methods necessary for image reconstruction were compared experimentally. The examples revealed, however, that the film was deformed so complexly that they could not be corrected sufficiently only by affine transformation. Accuracy of rectification was checked by use of stereo aerial photographs in terms of residual y-parallaxes. The result showed residual y-parallaxes of ± 1 pixel (± 50 μm) and sometimes ± 2 pixels were observed. They seem to be caused mainly by film deformations which have not been eliminated, and their amount seems to exceed the photogrammetric tolerance

Off-Line Stereo Plotting by Means of Image Correlation

The algorithm of automatic stereo plotting by iterative image correlation from aerial photographs and the corresponding empirical tests are described. The algorithm is oriented to off-line process, using a image scanner and a general purpose computer, and consists of 3 hierarchical correlation steps, based on one-dimensional matching using usual correlation maximum. For the correlation calculation, the FFT is effectively used. Though some defects exist in the algorithm at present, close contour plotting to middle scale maps is available except in hilly regions, in which marked features in ground covers do not exist

Diffusion MR microscopy of cortical development in the mouse embryo

Cortical development in the mouse embryo involves complex changes in the microstructure of the telencephalic wall, which are challenging to examine using three-dimensional (3D) imaging techniques. In this study, high-resolution 3D diffusion magnetic resonance (dMR) microscopy of the embryonic mouse cortex is presented. Using diffusion-weighted gradient- and spin-echo based acquisition, dMR microimaging data were acquired from fixed mouse embryos at 7 developmental stages from embryonic day (E)12.5 to E18.5. The dMR imaging (dMRI) contrasts revealed microscopic structural detail in the mouse telencephalic wall, allowing delineation of transient zones in the developing cortex based on their unique diffusion signatures. With the high-resolution 3D data of the mouse embryo, we were able to visualize the complex microstructure of embryonic cerebral tissue and to resolve its regional and temporal evolution during cortical formation. Furthermore, averaged dMRI contrasts generated via deformable registration revealed distinct spatial and temporal gradients of anisotropy variation across the developing embryonic cortical plate and the ventricular zone. The findings of this study demonstrate the potential of 3D dMRI to resolve the complex microstructure of the embryonic mouse cortex, and will be important for investigations of corticogenesis and its disruption in embryonic mouse models

Submillimeter diffusion tensor imaging and late gadolinium enhancement cardiovascular magnetic resonance of chronic myocardial infarction.

BackgroundKnowledge of the three-dimensional (3D) infarct structure and fiber orientation remodeling is essential for complete understanding of infarct pathophysiology and post-infarction electromechanical functioning of the heart. Accurate imaging of infarct microstructure necessitates imaging techniques that produce high image spatial resolution and high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). The aim of this study is to provide detailed reconstruction of 3D chronic infarcts in order to characterize the infarct microstructural remodeling in porcine and human hearts.MethodsWe employed a customized diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) technique in conjunction with late gadolinium enhancement (LGE) cardiovascular magnetic resonance (CMR) on a 3T clinical scanner to image, at submillimeter resolution, myofiber orientation and scar structure in eight chronically infarcted porcine hearts ex vivo. Systematic quantification of local microstructure was performed and the chronic infarct remodeling was characterized at different levels of wall thickness and scar transmurality. Further, a human heart with myocardial infarction was imaged using the same DTI sequence.ResultsThe SNR of non-diffusion-weighted images was >100 in the infarcted and control hearts. Mean diffusivity and fractional anisotropy (FA) demonstrated a 43% increase, and a 35% decrease respectively, inside the scar tissue. Despite this, the majority of the scar showed anisotropic structure with FA higher than an isotropic liquid. The analysis revealed that the primary eigenvector orientation at the infarcted wall on average followed the pattern of original fiber orientation (imbrication angle mean: 1.96 ± 11.03° vs. 0.84 ± 1.47°, p = 0.61, and inclination angle range: 111.0 ± 10.7° vs. 112.5 ± 6.8°, p = 0.61, infarcted/control wall), but at a higher transmural gradient of inclination angle that increased with scar transmurality (r = 0.36) and the inverse of wall thickness (r = 0.59). Further, the infarcted wall exhibited a significant increase in both the proportion of left-handed epicardial eigenvectors, and in the angle incoherency. The infarcted human heart demonstrated preservation of primary eigenvector orientation at the thinned region of infarct, consistent with the findings in the porcine hearts.ConclusionsThe application of high-resolution DTI and LGE-CMR revealed the detailed organization of anisotropic infarct structure at a chronic state. This information enhances our understanding of chronic post-infarction remodeling in large animal and human hearts

Content-based image retrieval for brain MRI: An image-searching engine and population-based analysis to utilize past clinical data for future diagnosis

AbstractRadiological diagnosis is based on subjective judgment by radiologists. The reasoning behind this process is difficult to document and share, which is a major obstacle in adopting evidence-based medicine in radiology. We report our attempt to use a comprehensive brain parcellation tool to systematically capture image features and use them to record, search, and evaluate anatomical phenotypes. Anatomical images (T1-weighted MRI) were converted to a standardized index by using a high-dimensional image transformation method followed by atlas-based parcellation of the entire brain. We investigated how the indexed anatomical data captured the anatomical features of healthy controls and a population with Primary Progressive Aphasia (PPA). PPA was chosen because patients have apparent atrophy at different degrees and locations, thus the automated quantitative results can be compared with trained clinicians' qualitative evaluations. We explored and tested the power of individual classifications and of performing a search for images with similar anatomical features in a database using partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) and principal component analysis (PCA). The agreement between the automated z-score and the averaged visual scores for atrophy (r = 0.8) was virtually the same as the inter-evaluator agreement. The PCA plot distribution correlated with the anatomical phenotypes and the PLS-DA resulted in a model with an accuracy of 88% for distinguishing PPA variants. The quantitative indices captured the main anatomical features. The indexing of image data has a potential to be an effective, comprehensive, and easily translatable tool for clinical practice, providing new opportunities to mine clinical databases for medical decision support

Surface-Based Analysis on Shape and Fractional Anisotropy of White Matter Tracts in Alzheimer's Disease

10.1371/journal.pone.0009811PLoS ONE53