Vascular Imaging Tool Visibility via Image Registration
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current vascular treatment imaging technologies, such as angiographic X-ray projection images, struggle to provide clear visibility of implantable cardiac devices like stents, making it difficult to determine correct deployment, expansion, and integrity during procedures like Percutaneous Transluminal Coronary Angioplasty.
Innovation Solution
An apparatus and method that utilize registration information from a set of images to select and combine specific frames, enhancing the visibility of vascular treatment tools and structures by aligning images based on localizing features, such as markers or stent geometry, to produce an enhanced image that reduces noise and improves geometric property assessment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If angiographic X-ray projection images are used for vascular treatment imaging, then the imaging system is simple and widely available, but the visibility of implantable cardiac devices like stents is poor
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple angiographic images acquired during a cardiac cycle and merges them into a single enhanced image. By registering and superimposing multiple images showing the stent at different phases, the stent structure becomes clearly visible while anatomical structures appear blurred due to their motion, thus resolving the contradiction between visibility and system complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent utilizes the periodic nature of the cardiac cycle to acquire images at specific phases. By triggering image acquisition at regular intervals corresponding to cardiac phases, the system captures consistent stent positions while allowing anatomical structures to move out of alignment, enhancing stent visibility without requiring complex real-time tracking
2Reliability
If multiple images are combined to enhance stent visibility, then the stent visibility improves, but images with different geometric properties may be combined incorrectly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a feedback mechanism where the system continuously monitors the geometric properties of images during registration. By comparing anatomical landmarks and adjusting the registration parameters based on the degree of alignment, the system ensures that only images with compatible geometric properties are combined, preventing incorrect merging while maintaining enhanced stent visibility
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs dynamic registration that adapts to changing geometric properties of images acquired at different cardiac phases. The registration algorithm adjusts transformation parameters in real-time based on the observed motion patterns, allowing accurate alignment of stent structures while accommodating variations in anatomical geometry across different image phases
3Reliability
If images are averaged to reduce noise, then noise reduction is achieved, but the visibility of moving anatomical structures is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the stent structure information from moving anatomical structures by selectively combining images. The registration process isolates the stationary or consistently positioned stent features while allowing anatomical structures to be excluded from the averaging process, thus reducing noise in the stent visualization without losing critical anatomical information
Data Source
AI summary
An apparatus for determining an enhanced image of a vascular treatment provides (12) a plurality of images including a representation of a region of interest of a vascular structure. Each of the plurality of images includes image data of at least one localizing feature associated with at least one tool configured to be used in the vascular treatment. Each of the plurality of images also includes image data associated with the at least one tool. Registration information for each of the images of the plurality of images is determined (14). At least two images from the plurality of images are selected (16) as a function of the registration information for each of the images. An enhanced image that provides for enhanced visibility of the at least one tool is determined (20). Data representative of the enhanced image is output (24).