Identification of the main arterial branches by whole-body contrast-enhanced MRA in elderly subjects using limited user interaction and fast marching

• Published in: Journal of magnetic resonance imaging Vol. 25; no. 4; pp. 806 - 814
• Main Authors: Tizon, Xavier, Lin, Qingfen, Hansen, Tomas, Borgefors, Gunilla, Johansson, Lars, Ahlström, Håkan, Frimmel, Hans
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken Wiley Subscription Services, Inc., A Wiley Company 01.04.2007
• Subjects: Aged; Algorithms; Arteries - anatomy & histology; Atherosclerosis; Contrast Media; Contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance angiography; Fast marching; Humans; Imaging, Three-Dimensional; Magnetic Resonance Angiography - methods; Maximum intensity projection; Segmentation; TECHNOLOGY; TEKNIKVETENSKAP; User interaction; Whole Body Imaging - methods
• ISSN: 1053-1807; 1522-2586; 1522-2586
• DOI: 10.1002/jmri.20848

Purpose To extract a graph model corresponding to a predefined set of arterial branches from whole‐body contrast‐enhanced magnetic resonance angiography (CE‐MRA) data sets in elderly asymptomatic subjects, a high‐incidence group. Materials and Methods Maximum intensity projections (MIPs) were used as an interface to place landmarks in the three‐dimensional (3D) data sets. These landmarks were linked together using fast marching to form a graph model of the arterial tree. Only vessels of interest were identified. Results We tested our method on 10 subjects. We were able to build a graph model of the main arterial branches that performed well in the presence of vascular pathologies, such as stenosis and aneurysm. The results were rated by an experienced radiologist, with an overall success rate of 80%. Conclusion We were able to extract chosen arterial branches in 3D whole‐body CE‐MRA images with a moderate amount of interaction using a single MIP projection. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.