Three‐dimensional reconstruction of registered and fused Chinese Visible Human and patient MRI images

Abstract

Radiological images are commonly used as important tools in medical diagnoses and treatment. Different modalities of medical images provide uniquely different content. Hence, it is natural and desirable to combine different image modalities to obtain additional new information to enhance clinical assessment. However, given the current technology, radiological images are not always sufficiently informative to permit diagnosis and treatment. In order to address this problem, we fused selected portions of the Chinese Visible Human (CVH) dataset with MRI images from a patient. Specifically, we segmented the caudate nucleus, the lentiform nucleus, and the thalamus in the CVH dataset and then registered and fused this dataset with corresponding MRI images using both rigid and nonrigid registration techniques. After rigid and nonrigid registration, the CVH and MRI images largely coincided with each other. The shape, relationship, and position of focal areas and neural structures were clearly displayed. Using volume and surface rendering, these images were three-dimensionally reconstructed to display the neural structures of interest within the brain. These structures can be rotated at will and observed from different angles. Our research indicates that the fusion of CVH and patients' MRI images can enhance the amount of neural information available to physicians and lay a foundation for the clinical use of the CVH dataset.