Method and device for segmenting a medical examination object with quantitative magnetic resonance imaging

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9974490-B2
Application number	US-201514956755-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 2, 2015
Priority date	Dec 2, 2014
Publication date	May 22, 2018
Grant date	May 22, 2018

Abstract

In a method and magnetic resonance apparatus for segmenting image data of an examination object, raw data of the examination object are achieved with the operation of a magnetic resonance scanner. Quantitative image data of the examination object are then calculated in a processor from the raw data. At least one physical variable of the examination object is quantitatively ascertained pixelwise and is displayed. The quantitative image data are segmented for identification of predetermined objects in the quantitative image data, and displayed in a display unit.

First claim

We claim as our invention:

1. A method for segmenting image data of an examination object comprising:
providing raw data to a computer, said raw data having been acquired from an examination object exhibiting at least one physical variable;
in said computer, automatically determining quantitative image data of the examination object from the raw data and displaying said quantitative image data at a display screen in communication with said computer as a plurality of pixels with each pixel presenting a value of said at least one physical variable; in said computer, determining first quantitative image data from the raw data comprising pixels in which a value of a first physical variable is quantitatively ascertained, and displaying said pixels representing said first physical variable at said display screen;
segmenting said first quantitative image data at said display screen to select at least one segment in the displayed quantitative image data that represents a predetermined image object in said quantitative image data;
determining a first quality parameter for the segmented first image data that designates a degree of reliability that said predetermined image object can be identified in the segmented first image data;
in said computer, determining second quantitative image data from the raw data comprising pixels in which a value of a second physical variable is quantitatively ascertained, and displaying said pixels representing said second physical variable at said display screen;
segmenting said second quantitative image data at said display screen;
determining a second quality parameter for the segmented second image data that designates a degree of reliability that said predetermined image object can be identified in the segmented second image data; and
in said computer comparing the segmented first quantitative image data with the segmented second quantitative image data and, in any region in which the predetermined image object in the segmented first quantitative image data does not match the predetermined image object in the segmented second quantitative image data, automatically selecting, as said predetermined image object, the quantitative image data having a higher quality parameter associated therewith.

2. The method as claimed in claim 1 comprising, in said computer, determining an overlaid variable from said first and second physical variable of the examination object.

3. The method as claimed in claim 1 comprising implementing each segmenting using a statistical model of the examination object that is dependent on at least one statistical variable that is associated with said physical variable.

4. The method as claimed in claim 1 comprising determining said physical variable by magnetic resonance fingerprinting.

5. The method as claimed in claim 1 comprising employing, as said physical variable, a variable selected from the group consisting of T 1 , T 2 , T 2 * and off resonance in magnetic resonance imaging of said quantitative image data.

6. The method as claimed in claim 1 comprising, after segmenting said quantitative image data, manually allocating, via said display screen healthy and pathological tissue to said quantitative image data having said quality parameter associated therewith.

7. The method for segmenting image data of an examination object comprising:
providing raw data to a computer, said raw data having been acquired from an examination object exhibiting at least one physical variable;
in said computer, automatically determining quantitative image data of the examination object from the raw data and displaying said quantitative image data at a display screen in communication with said computer as a plurality of pixels with each pixel presenting a value of said at least one physical variable;
segmenting the displayed quantitative image data to select at least one segment in the displayed quantitative image data that represents a predetermined image object in said quantitative image data; and
comparing said physical variable in the quantitative image data of the predetermined image object with a reference database that comprises a plurality of sets of reference data respectively for different examination objects, and when a predetermined deviation of said physical variable from one of said reference data sets is exceeded, displaying a designation at said display screen that said deviation has been exceeded.

8. The method as claimed in claim 7 comprising, after segmenting the object in the quantitative image data, further segmenting said object by magnetic resonance fingerprinting sub-voxel quantification, using at least one physical variable of the pixels from said reference database.

9. The method as claimed in claim 8 comprising determining said predetermined image object by a procedure selected from the group consisting of thresholding, correlation analysis, region growing, image processing with regard to active objects, and statistical testing, of at least two physical variables in said quantitative image data by comparison with said first reference database.

10. The method as claimed in claim 9 wherein said reference database is a first reference database, and comprising, in said computer, determining a volume of said predetermined image object from said physical variable in the quantitative image data, and comparing said volume with a second reference database that comprises a plurality of sets of volume data respectively for different examination objects, and when a predetermined deviation of said volume from one of said volume data sets is exceeded, displaying a designation at said display screen that said deviation has been exceeded.

11. The method as claimed in claim 10 comprising supplying said quantitative data to at least one of said first reference database and said second reference database.

12. The method as claimed in claim 10 comprising allocating the quantitative image data to a tissue type and thereafter supplying said quantitative image data with said allocation to at least one of said first reference database and said second reference database.

13. The method as claimed in claim 12 comprising allocating said quantitative image data to said tissue type by selecting a pixel in said quantitative image data and then seeking adjacent pixels having a same quantitative value up to a predetermined deviation, and allocating said pixel and any of said pixels not exceeding said predetermined deviation to said tissue type.

14. The method as claimed in claim 7 comprising determining a quantitative ratio between at least two physical variables of said predetermined object and displaying a deviation of said quantitative ratio as at least one of a graphic, a color chart, or a color overlay on a medical image corresponding to said quantitative image data.

15. The method comprising:
providing raw data to a computer, said raw data having been acquired from an examination object exhibiting at least one physical variable;
in said computer, automatically determining quantitative image data of the examination object from the raw data and displaying said quantitative image data at a display screen in communication with said computer as a plurality of pixels with each pixel presenting a value of said at least one physical variable;
segmenting the displayed quantitative image data to select at least one segment in the displayed quantitative image data that represents a predetermined image object in said quantitative image data; and
in said computer, determining a volume of said predetermined image object from said physical variable in the quantitative image data, and compari

Assignees

• Siemens Ag

Inventors

• Bachschmidt Theresa
• Grodzki David
• Meyer Heiko
• Nittka Mathias
• Raithel Esther

Classifications

• G06T2207/20036

  Morphological image processing · CPC title

• G06T7/0014

  using an image reference approach · CPC title

• G01R33/5608

  Data processing and visualization specially adapted for MR, e.g. for feature analysis and pattern recognition on the basis of measured MR data, segmentation of measured MR data, edge contour detection on the basis of measured MR data, for enhancing measured MR data in terms of signal-to-noise ratio by means of noise filtering or apodization, for enhancing measured MR data in terms of resolution by means for deblurring, windowing, zero filling, or generation of gray-scaled images, colour-coded images or images displaying vectors instead of pixels (image data processing or generation, in general G06T) · CPC title

• A61B2576/00

  Medical imaging apparatus involving image processing or analysis (A61B1/00009, A61B6/52 and A61B8/52 take precedence) · CPC title

• A61B5/743 Primary

  Displaying an image simultaneously with additional graphical information, e.g. symbols, charts, function plots · CPC title