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Automatic rectum limit detection by anatomical markers correlation.
R Namías1, J P D'Amato2, M del Fresno3
1CIFASIS, French Argentine International Center for Information and Systems Sciences, UAM (France)/UNR-CONICET (Argentina), Bv. 27 de Febrero 210 Bis, 2000 Rosario, Argentina; Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Argentina.
This study introduces an automatic method for detecting the rectum and sigmoid colon limit using global curvature analysis. This technique enhances computer-aided detection (CAD) systems for digestive diseases.
Area of Science:
- Medical Imaging
- Digestive System Anatomy
- Computational Anatomy
Background:
- Diseases affecting the lower digestive tract require accurate diagnosis, often aided by computer-aided detection (CAD) systems.
- Current CAD systems primarily focus on segmenting the entire digestive tube, potentially missing crucial sectional boundary information.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop an automatic method for detecting the limit between the rectum and sigmoid colon.
- To improve information provided to CAD systems by identifying specific anatomical boundaries.
Main Methods:
- A novel global curvature analysis applied to the centerline of the segmented digestive tube.
- Validation using anatomical markers: the third sacral vertebra and average rectum length.
- Application to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography colonography (CTC) data.
Main Results:
- The proposed method demonstrates efficacy in automatically detecting rectum limits across different imaging modalities.
- Results show consistency when compared against established anatomical markers.
- Successful application in both MRI and CTC acquisitions.
Conclusions:
- The developed automatic method effectively identifies the rectum and sigmoid colon limit.
- This technique can enhance rectum segmentation in MRI for geometrical modeling.
- Provides valuable contextual information for virtual colonoscopies and CAD systems.
