Guy U. Poloni1,2, Michael G. Dwyer1,
Niels Bergsland1, Claudiu V. Schirda1, Stefano
Bastianello2, Robert Zivadinov3,4
1Buffalo Neuroimaging Analysis Center,
Buffalo, NY, United States; 2Neuroradiology Unit, Fondazione
Istituto Neurologico Casimiro Mondino IRCCS, Pavia, Italy; 3Buffalo
Neuroimaging Analysis Center, Buffalo , NY , United States; 4The
Jacobs Neurological Institute, University at Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, United
States
SWI
is a MRI application that can directly image cerebral veins through the use
of phase information to enhance local susceptibility. The present work
introduces an algorithm, based on a 3-dimensional linear filter, for
segmenting and measuring vein vessels in the brain and for classifying
vessels according to their diameter. The resultant multi-scale line-filtered
images provide significantly improved segmentation and visualization of curvilinear
structures, in particular with respect to small vessels, contributing to the
quantitative investigation of vascular impairment in the pathologies of the
central nervous system.