Morphological evaluation of the iliac and femoral arteries; possibilities and perspectives

Abstract

The study presented an approach to the morphometric image of atherosclerotic lesions of the final segment of the abdominal aorta, femoral and iliac arteries, considering possible endovascular intervention. The evaluation of these arteries is very important, because they are often used as a point of access for endovascular procedures performed on the peripheral arteries, or within the thoracic and abdominal aorta and its branches, as well as coronary arteries. The aim of the study was to determine morphometric measurements describing the atherosclerotic lesions, including the methodology of their surgical interpretation. The study group comprised 128 tomograms of patients qualified for surgery. An algorithm based on the mathematical morphology was designed to track the vessels, starting from the division of the common femoral artery, and ending at the bifurcation of the abdominal aorta. We proposed a set of numerical measurements of the observed arterial changes. We analysed 128 tomograms with a 94.5% efficiency, and with the assessment accuracy of the degree of lumen reduction (MAE--1.5%). We observed much higher measurement values of local tortuosity of the atherosclerotic arteries (0.3-1 radians), as compared to their anatomical course in a healthy subject (0-0.2 radians). The presented method can be a very accurate and useful tool in the numerical analysis of the lumen distribution of the arteries and atherosclerosis, dedicated to surgeons elaborating management strategies.