University of Washington

Paul D Sampson

Florence H Sheehan

Robert M Haralick

Edward L Bolson

Fred L Bookstein

A method for defining a three-dimensional surface of at least a portion of a patient's heart, based on data obtained by ultrasound imaging of the heart. The imaging is carried out over at least one cardiac cycle and provides a plurality of images in different image planes made with an ultrasound transducer at known positions and orientations. At least three anatomical landmarks in these images are manually identified in each of the images. An ultrasound mesh model in which a three-dimensional abstract mesh defining an archetype shape for a population of other hearts is developed. This abstract mesh has associated with it a covariance that defines the extent of variation of control vertices in the mesh for the population of training data used to derive the mesh model. The mesh model is rigidly aligned with the images of the patient's heart. Predicted images in planes corresponding to those of the images for the patient's heart and derived from the mesh model are compared corresponding images of the patient's heart. Control vertices are included with the abstract mesh for reiteratively adjusting a shape of the mesh model to optimize the fit of the predicted images to the observed images of the patient's heart. This adjustment and comparison continues until an acceptable fit is obtained, yielding an output that defines the shape of the endocardium and epicardium of the left ventricle or other portion of the patient's heart, in three dimensions, for use in determining cardiac parameters.

Automated delineation of heart contours from images using

A method for imaging and three-dimensional modeling portions of the heart, particularly, the left ventricular endocardial and epicardial surfaces, using imaging data. Preferably, a transesophageal ultrasound probe is inserted into an esophagus of a patient to provide multiple plane imaging data at end systole and end diastole during a cardiac cycle. The image planes are then traced along the boundaries of the epicardial and endocardial surfaces to produce sets of data points, which are further processed and expanded through interpolation. These data points are used for modeling the endocardial and epicardial surface at the end systole and end diastole extremes of the cardiac cycle. A center surface is constructed between an inner and outer surface of the modeled surfaces of the left ventricle and an average template of tiled sections is mapped onto this center surface. The mapped tiled sections are then projected onto the inner and outer surfaces, defining triangular prisms. By determining the volume of the triangular prisms and an average area for their ends, the range of movement, which is equal to the volume divided by the average area, is determined. Similarly, for changes in wall thickness between the endocardial and epicardial surfaces at end diastole and end systole, the thickening of the cardiac wall is determined.

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Seattle, WA, United States of America

Paul D Sampson