Angiography method and apparatus

An apparatus for producing an angiographic image representation of a subject, the apparatus comprising:

• an imaging scanner that acquires imaging data from at least a portion of a subject, the imaging data including vascular contrast;
• a reconstruction processor that reconstructs an image representation from the imaging data, the image representation formed of image elements and exhibiting vascular contrast;
• a processor that converts the image representation into an edge-enhanced image representation having enhanced vascular edges and divides the edge-enhanced image representation into at least one two-dimensional slice formed of pixels, and for each slice:
• flood-fills the vascular edges to form filled regions defined by pixels having a first value,
• identifies vessel centers through iterative removal of pixels having the first value from around the edges of the filled regions, and
• tags vessel overlaps and vessel furcations identified as a plurality of vessel centers corresponding to a single filled region;
• and
• segments, tracks, extracts, enhances, or identifies vascular information contained in the angiographic image using the identified vessel centers as operative inputs.

A method for characterizing a vascular system in a three-dimensional angiographic image comprised of voxels, the method comprising:

• extracting from the angiographic image a two-dimensional slice formed of pixels;
• locating imaged vascular structures in the slice;
• flood-filling the imaged vascular structures to form filled regions defined by pixels having a first value;
• iteratively eroding the edges of the filled regions to identify vessel center points;
• and
• repeating the extracting, locating, flood-filling, and eroding for a plurality of slices to generate a plurality of vessel center points that are representative of the vascular system.

A processor for carrying out a method for characterizing a vascular system in a three-dimensional angiographic image comprised of voxels, the method comprising:

• extracting from the angiographic image two-dimensional slices formed of pixels;
• flood-filling imaged vascular structures in the slices to form filled regions defined by pixels having a first value;
• eroding the edges of the filled regions to identify a plurality of vessel center points representative of the vascular system;
• selecting a first vessel center point;
• finding a vessel direction corresponding to the first vessel center point based on analysis of the angiographic image in the three-dimensional neighborhood of the first vessel center point;
• defining a plane of the angiographic image perpendicular to the vessel direction and containing the first vessel center point;
• estimating vessel boundaries corresponding to the first vessel center point in the defined plane;
• repeating the selecting, finding, defining, and estimating for the plurality of vessel center points;
• and
• interpolating the estimated vessel boundaries to produce a vascular representation.

A method for tracking a vascular system in an angiographic image, the method comprising:

• identifying a plurality of vessel centers in three dimensions that are representative of the vascular system;
• selecting a first vessel center;
• finding a first vessel direction corresponding to the local direction of the vessel at the first vessel center;
• defining a first slice that is orthogonal to the first vessel direction and includes the first vessel center;
• estimating vessel boundaries in the first slice by iteratively propagating a closed geometric contour arranged about the first vessel center;
• repeating the selecting, finding, defining, and estimating for the plurality of vessel centers;
• and
• interpolating the estimated vessel boundaries to form a vascular tree.

An apparatus for characterizing a vascular system in a three-dimensional angiographic image comprised of voxels, the apparatus comprising:

• a means for extracting from the angiographic image a two-dimensional slice formed of pixels;
• a means for locating imaged vascular structures in the slice;
• a means for flood-filling the imaged vascular structures to form filled regions defined by pixels having a first value;
• a means for iteratively eroding the edges of the filled regions to identify vessel center points;
• and
• a means for generating a plurality of vessel center points that are representative of the vascular system, the means for generating being in operative communication with the means for extracting, the means for locating, the means for flood-filling, and the means for eroding.

An apparatus for tracking a vascular system in an angiographic image, the apparatus comprising:

• a means for identifying a plurality of vessel centers in three dimensions that are representative of the vascular system;
• a means for selecting a first vessel center;
• a means for finding a first vessel direction corresponding to the local direction of the vessel at the first vessel center;
• a means for defining a first slice that is orthogonal to the first vessel direction and includes the first vessel center;
• a means for estimating vessel boundaries in the first slice by iteratively propagating a closed geometric contour arranged about the first vessel center;
• a means for interpolating the estimated vessel boundaries to form a vascular tree after the selecting, finding, defining, and estimating have been repeated for the plurality of vessel centers.