Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for automatic road mapping for heart valve replacement and an examination apparatus for automatic road mapping for heart valve replacement. In order to provide the cardiologist or surgeon with better information during PHV implantation, an examination apparatus for automatic roadmapping for heart valve replacement is provided, that comprises at least one X-ray image acquisition device (10), a calculation unit (18) and a display device (20). The image acquisition device is adapted to acquire (32) at least one X-ray image of a vessel root region of a heart with injected contrast agent and to acquire (46) at least one current fluoroscopy image of the vessel root region with a replacement valve inserted into the vessel.

Abstract: 2D images are registered with 3D volume data. In order to provide 2D/3D registration with a facilitated workflow 3D volume data (112) of an object, having a frame of reference is received. A transformation plane (116) is defined in relation to the 3D volume data. A 2D image of the object with an image plane is received. The transformation plane is projected on the image plane. The frame of reference is aligned with the 2D image. At least one alignment interaction value (128) is projected (130) on the transformation plane to determine (134) at least one transformed interaction value (132). The frame of reference is translated with the at least one transformed interaction value.

Abstract: A medical viewing system with an X-ray image acquisition device for acquiring angiograms and interventional live images of vessels is adapted for generating a region of interest border into which an object referenced by an object-based registration process must extend in order to achieve an accurate registration of vessel trees extracted from the angiogram and the live images. The region of interest border is then overlaid onto the vessel tree images and the live images. The medical viewing system reminds the person accomplishing the intervention of the importance of pushing the object far enough into the image, while being discrete enough to be ignored if preferred, thus yielding in a reliable and precise road mapping processing.

Abstract: The present invention describes a method for rendering and displaying a curved planar reformat (CPR) view (7?) of a blood vessel's 3D tubular structure (1), wherein the viewing direction of the curved planar reformat view (7?) is coupled to the viewing angle on a segmented or raw representation of the 3D tubular structure's rendered voxel volume to be visualized or, alternatively, to the C-arm geometry of a 3D rotational angiography device's C-arm system (6). The proposed method thus enables measurements on the X-ray image which do not suffer from spatial foreshortening and do not need to be calibrated. Thereby, said coupling can be performed bidirectional. According to a first aspect of the proposed method, this means that the viewing direction of the aforementioned curved planar reformat view (7?) follows the viewing angle on a segmented or raw representation of the 3D tubular structure's rendered voxel volume to be visualized, or vice versa.

Abstract: The present invention relates to accurate positioning for vessel intervention procedures, particularly to a method for accurate positioning for vessel intervention procedures, a medical imaging system for accurate positioning for vessel intervention procedures and a catheterization laboratory system for accurate positioning for vessel intervention procedures. First, at least one X-ray image of a vessel region of interest is acquired (24) with injected contrast agent. Further, vessel information data is identified (26) within the at least one acquired image. Then, first calcification features of the vessel in the vessel region of interest in the at least one acquired image are detected (28). Further, vessel representation is generated (30) using the vessel information data and the detected calcification features. Further, at least one current fluoroscopic image of the vessel region of interest is acquired (32).

Abstract: In a method for positioning an X-ray image acquisition device a straight reference plane (30) intersecting a three-dimensional representation of the object, a center point (34) within the intersection of the object, a normal vector (38) to the reference plane and at least one tangential vector (40) within the reference plane are created. Thereafter, the reference plane, the object's frame of reference and the X-ray image acquisition's frame of reference are registered. At least one viewing direction derived from the normal vector (38) and/or at least one tangential vector (40) is defined, wherein the X-ray image acquisition device is adjusted to the geometrical parameters of the X-ray image acquisition device.

Abstract: The present invention relates to interactive registration of 2D images with 3D volume data, and in particular relates to the registration of two 2D images with 3D volume data.

Abstract: In clinical reality, the cross section of the lesions is frequently asymmetric. For clinical purposes it is crucial to find an X-ray view that gives a projection image where the minimum luminal cross section of the lesion is shown. In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a system is proposed, wherein the system is adapted to perform the steps of a method of identifying modifications of an elongated element located in an object of interest. The method might comprise the steps of generating a plurality of projections of the object of interest, wherein the projections have different projection angles, determining geometrical aspects of the elongate element in each of the projections, calculating an index on the basis of the geometrical aspects, indicating projections having a desired value of the index.

Abstract: In a method for positioning an X-ray image acquisition device a straight reference plane (30) intersecting a three-dimensional representation of the object, a center point (34) within the intersection of the object, a normal vector (38) to the reference plane and at least one tangential vector (40) within the reference plane are created. Thereafter, the reference plane, the object's frame of reference and the X-ray image acquisition's frame of reference are registered. At least one viewing direction derived from the normal vector (38) and/or at least one tangential vector (40) is defined, wherein the X-ray image acquisition device is adjusted to the geometrical parameters of the X-ray image acquisition device.

Abstract: The present invention relates to accurate positioning for vessel intervention procedures, particularly to a method for accurate positioning for vessel intervention procedures, a medical imaging system for accurate positioning for vessel intervention procedures and a catheterization laboratory system for accurate positioning for vessel intervention procedures. First, at least one X-ray image of a vessel region of interest is acquired (24) with injected contrast agent. Further, vessel information data is identified (26) within the at least one acquired image. Then, first calcification features of the vessel in the vessel region of interest in the at least one acquired image are detected (28). Further, vessel representation is generated (30) using the vessel information data and the detected calcification features. Further, at least one current fluoroscopic image of the vessel region of interest is acquired (32).

Abstract: A medical viewing system with an X-ray image acquisition device for acquiring angiograms and interventional live images of vessels is adapted for generating a region of interest border into which an object referenced by an object-based registration process must extend in order to achieve an accurate registration of vessel trees extracted from the angiogram and the live images. The region of interest border is then overlaid onto the vessel tree images and the live images. The medical viewing system reminds the person accomplishing the intervention of the importance of pushing the object far enough into the image, while being discrete enough to be ignored if preferred, thus yielding in a reliable and precise road mapping processing.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method for automatic road mapping for heart valve replacement and an examination apparatus for automatic road mapping for heart valve replacement. In order to provide the cardiologist or surgeon with better information during PHV implantation, an examination apparatus for automatic roadmapping for heart valve replacement is provided, that comprises at least one X-ray image acquisition device (10), a calculation unit (18) and a display device (20). The image acquisition device is adapted to acquire (32) at least one X-ray image of a vessel root region of a heart with injected contrast agent and to acquire (46) at least one current fluoroscopy image of the vessel root region with a replacement valve inserted into the vessel.

Abstract: In clinical reality, the cross section of the lesions is frequently asymmetric. For clinical purposes it is crucial to find an X-ray view that gives a projection image where the minimum luminal cross section of the lesion is shown. In accordance with an exemplary embodiment of the invention, a system is proposed, wherein the system is adapted to perform the steps of a method of identifying modifications of an elongated element located in an object of interest. The method might comprise the steps of generating a plurality of projections of the object of interest, wherein the projections have different projection angles, determining geometrical aspects of the elongate element in each of the projections, calculating an index on the basis of the geometrical aspects, indicating projections having a desired value of the index.

Abstract: An image of a physical object is produced by receiving a plurality of raw images, dividing the plurality of raw images into a first subset of primary images and a second subset of secondary images according to a predetermined criterion. From the first subset of primary images an intermediate image is determined while from the second subset of secondary images a mask image is determined. Afterwards a registration of the intermediate image and the mask image is performed by using direct registration of predetermined features present in the intermediate image and the mask image. A fused image of the physical object is generated out of the mask image and the intermediate image.

Abstract: The present invention describes a method for rendering and displaying a curved planar reformat (CPR) view (7?) of a blood vessel's 3D tubular structure (1), wherein the viewing direction of the curved planar reformat view (7?) is coupled to the viewing angle on a segmented or raw representation of the 3D tubular structure's rendered voxel volume to be visualized or, alternatively, to the C-arm geometry of a 3D rotational angiography device's C-arm system (6). The proposed method thus enables measurements on the X-ray image which do not suffer from spatial foreshortening and do not need to be calibrated. Thereby, said coupling can be performed bidirectional. According to a first aspect of the proposed method, this means that the viewing direction of the aforementioned curved planar reformat view (7?) follows the viewing angle on a segmented or raw representation of the 3D tubular structure's rendered voxel volume to be visualized, or vice versa.

Abstract: The field of the invention is diagnostic and interventional radiology and the invention is a dose indicator for use in a system for performing radiological procedures using ionizing radiation, for indicating a dose of radiation received in an area of skin by a subject during the radiological procedure, in which a zone is displayed which is representative of the extent of the area of skin exposed, and in which is a value of dose is displayed which is associated with the zone. The value of dose is representative of the dose of radiation received in the area of skin exposed during the procedure. The display is easily and quickly understood allowing the user of the system to swiftly understand the skin dose accrued by the patient. The use of zones provides an intuitive display.

Abstract: A method for enhancing a moving structure of interest in a sequence of images is described, wherein images of the sequence are captured at different times and defined by a matrix of discrete pixels.

Abstract: The field of the invention is diagnostic and interventional radiology and the invention is a dose indicator for use in a system for performing radiological procedures using ionizing radiation, for indicating a dose of radiation received in an area of skin by a subject during the radiological procedure, in which a zone is displayed which is representative of the extent of the area of skin exposed, and in which is a value of dose is displayed which is associated with the zone. The value of dose is representative of the dose of radiation received in the area of skin exposed during the procedure. The display is easily and quickly understood allowing the user of the system to swiftly understand the skin dose accrued by the patient. The use of zones provides an intuitive display.

Abstract: According to an exemplary embodiment a method for producing an image of a physical object comprises receiving a plurality of raw images, dividing the plurality of raw images into a first subset of primary images and a second subset of secondary images according to a predetermined criterion. From the first subset of primary images an intermediate image is determined while from the second subset of secondary images a mask image is determined. Afterwards a registration of the intermediate image and the mask image is performed by using direct registration of predetermined features present in the intermediate image and the mask image and fused image of the physical object is generated out of the mask image and the intermediate image.