Summary
Abstract:
If planned and applied correctly, intra-vascular brachytherapy (IVB) can significantly
reduce the risk of restenosis after interventional treatment of stenotic arteries.
Objectives:
In order to facilitate computer-based IVB planning, a three-dimensional reconstruction
of the stenotic artery based on intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) sequences is desirable.
Methods:
To attain a 3D reconstruction, the frames of the IVUS sequence are properly aligned
in space and completed with additional intermediate frames generated by interpolation.
The alignment procedure uses additional information that is obtained from biplane
X-ray angiography performed simultaneously during the capturing of the IVUS sequence.
After IVUS images and biplane angiography data are acquired from the patient, the
vessel-wall borders and the IVUS catheter are detected by an active contour algorithm.
Next, the twist between adjacent IVUS frames is determined by a sequential triangulation
method combined with stochastic analysis.
Results:
The above procedure results in a 3D volume-model of the vessel, which also contains
information from the IVUS modality. This data is sufficient for computer-based intravascular
brachytherapy planning.
Conclusion:
The proposed methodology can be used to improve the current state-of-the-art IVB
treatment planning by enabling computerized dosage computations on a highly accurate
3D model.
Keywords
Cardiovascular brachytherapy - image fusion - image registration - 3D reconstruction
