KR102367133B1 - Medical image apparatus and method for processing medical image - Google Patents

Abstract

acquiring a 3D medical image and a 2D medical image representing blood vessels; determining a blood vessel region in a 3D medical image corresponding to a partial region of a blood vessel in the 2D medical image; and matching a blood vessel region to a partial region of a blood vessel in a 2D medical image, and a medical image processing method and a medical imaging apparatus therefor.

Description

Medical imaging apparatus and medical image processing method

The present disclosure relates to a medical imaging apparatus for matching a 2D medical image and a 3D medical image, and a medical image processing method.

A medical imaging apparatus is a device for acquiring an internal structure of an object as an image. The medical imaging apparatus captures and processes structural details, internal tissues, and fluid flow in the body, and displays the images to the user. A user such as a doctor may diagnose a patient's health condition and disease by using a medical image output from the medical imaging apparatus.

An X-ray apparatus, which is an example of a medical imaging apparatus, is a medical imaging apparatus that transmits X-rays through a human body to obtain an image of an internal structure of the human body. The X-ray apparatus has advantages in that it is convenient and can acquire a medical image of an object within a short time compared to other medical imaging apparatuses including an MRI apparatus and a CT apparatus. Accordingly, the X-ray apparatus is widely used for simple chest imaging, simple abdominal imaging, simple skeletal imaging, simple sinus imaging, simple neck soft tissue imaging, and mammography.

Fluoroscopy is an image processing technology that acquires an X-ray video by photographing an object in real time. A user may use fluoroscopy for the purpose of monitoring an X-ray angiography or a surgical procedure.

According to the present embodiments, a medical imaging apparatus and a medical image processing method for matching a 2D medical image and a 3D medical image are provided.

A medical image processing method according to a first aspect includes: acquiring a 3D medical image representing blood vessels and a 2D medical image representing blood vessels; determining a blood vessel region in a 3D medical image corresponding to a partial region of a blood vessel in the 2D medical image; and matching the blood vessel region to a partial region in the 2D medical image.

In addition, the partial region may be at least one of a region to which a contrast agent is administered in a blood vessel in a 2D medical image, a region of interest in a blood vessel in a 2D medical image, or a region in which a target is located in a blood vessel in the 2D medical image. It may be any one area.

In addition, the determining may include separating the 3D blood vessel region from the 3D medical image; separating a partial region from a 2D medical image; and determining, as a blood vessel region, a sub-vascular region having the highest similarity to a partial region among a plurality of sub-vascular regions divided from the three-dimensional blood vessel region.

In addition, the determining may include performing a parallel movement or rotational movement with respect to centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions; calculating a distance between center lines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular areas moved in parallel or rotationally moved and a center line of a partial area; and determining a sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from the partial region as the blood vessel region.

In addition, the determining may include: projecting centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions on a two-dimensional plane; calculating a distance between centerlines of each of the projected plurality of sub-vascular regions and a centerline of a partial region; and determining a sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from a partial region of the blood vessel as the blood vessel region.

In addition, the calculating may include: generating a distance transform with respect to a centerline of a partial region; and calculating a distance between the centerlines of each of the plurality of projected sub-vascular regions and the centerlines of the partial regions by using the distance transformation.

In addition, the matching may include: determining 3D transformation information for matching the blood vessel region and the partial region; and matching the blood vessel region to a partial region in the 2D medical image based on the 3D transformation information.

In addition, the medical image processing method may include: storing an image in which a blood vessel region is matched to a 2D medical image; and displaying the matched image.

In addition, the 3D medical image may be an image obtained through CT angiography prior to an operation on the object, and the 2D medical image may be obtained by performing x-ray angiography during an operation on the object. It may be an image obtained through

According to a second aspect, a medical imaging apparatus includes: an image acquisition unit configured to acquire a 3D medical image representing blood vessels and a 2D medical image representing blood vessels; and a matching unit that determines a blood vessel region in the 3D medical image corresponding to a partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image and matches the blood vessel region to the partial region in the 2D medical image.

According to a third aspect, there is provided a computer-readable recording medium in which a program for implementing the above-described method is recorded.

1 is a block diagram of a medical imaging apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment.
2 is a block diagram of a medical imaging apparatus according to another exemplary embodiment.
3 is a diagram for explaining an embodiment in which a medical imaging apparatus extracts a 3D blood vessel region or a centerline of a 3D blood vessel region from a 3D medical image.
4 and 5 are diagrams for explaining an embodiment in which the medical imaging apparatus divides a 3D blood vessel region into a plurality of sub blood vessel regions.
6 is a diagram for describing an embodiment in which a medical imaging apparatus separates a partial region of a blood vessel from a 2D medical image, according to an embodiment.
7 is an exemplary embodiment in which the medical imaging apparatus determines a sub-vascular region having the highest similarity to a partial region of a blood vessel from among a plurality of sub-vascular regions.
FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining an embodiment of matching a blood vessel region in a 3D medical image to a 2D medical image, according to an embodiment.
9 is a diagram for describing a medical image processing method performed by a medical imaging apparatus, according to an exemplary embodiment.
10 and 11 are diagrams illustrating an X-ray apparatus according to an exemplary embodiment.
FIG. 12 is a diagram showing the configuration of the communication unit of FIG. 11 .

Advantages and features of the present disclosure, and a method of achieving them will become apparent with reference to the embodiments described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, the present disclosure is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below, but may be implemented in various different forms, and only the present embodiments allow the disclosure of the present disclosure to be complete, and common knowledge in the art to which the present disclosure belongs It is provided to fully inform those who have the scope of the invention, and the present disclosure is only defined by the scope of the claims.

Terms used in this specification will be briefly described, and the present disclosure will be described in detail.

The terms used in the present disclosure have been selected as currently widely used general terms as possible while considering the functions in the present disclosure, but these may vary depending on the intention or precedent of a person skilled in the art, the emergence of new technology, and the like. In addition, in a specific case, there is a term arbitrarily selected by the applicant, and in this case, the meaning will be described in detail in the description of the corresponding invention. Therefore, the terms used in the present disclosure should be defined based on the meaning of the term and the contents of the present disclosure, rather than the simple name of the term.

In the entire specification, when a part "includes" a certain element, this means that other elements may be further included, rather than excluding other elements, unless otherwise stated. Also, as used herein, the term “unit” refers to a hardware component such as software, FPGA, or ASIC, and “unit” performs certain roles. However, 'part' is not limited to software or hardware. The 'unit' may be configured to reside on an addressable storage medium or it may be configured to refresh one or more processors. Thus, by way of example, “part” includes components such as software components, object-oriented software components, class components and task components, processes, functions, properties, procedures, subroutines, segments of program code, drivers, firmware, microcode, circuitry, data, databases, data structures, tables, arrays and variables. The functionality provided within components and “parts” may be combined into a smaller number of components and “parts” or further divided into additional components and “parts”.

In this specification, "image" may mean multi-dimensional data composed of discrete image elements (eg, pixels in a 2D image and voxels in a 3D image). Examples of the image may include a medical image of an object obtained by an X-ray apparatus, a computed tomography (CT) apparatus, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) apparatus, an ultrasound apparatus, and other medical apparatuses.

Also, as used herein, an “object” may be a human or an animal, or a part of a human or animal. For example, the object may include at least one of organs such as liver, heart, uterus, brain, breast, and abdomen, nerves, bones, and blood vessels. Also, the “object” may be a phantom. A phantom refers to a material that is very close to the density and effective atomic number of an organism and is very close to the volume of an organism, and may include a spherical phantom having properties similar to a body.

Also, in the present specification, a “user” may be a medical professional, such as a doctor, a nurse, a clinical pathologist, a medical imaging specialist, or a technician repairing a medical device, but is not limited thereto.

1 is a block diagram of a medical imaging apparatus 100 according to an exemplary embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 1 , the medical imaging apparatus 100 may include an image acquisition unit 110 and a matching unit 120 , according to an embodiment. In the medical imaging apparatus 100 illustrated in FIG. 1 , only components related to the present exemplary embodiment are illustrated. Accordingly, it can be understood by those of ordinary skill in the art related to the present embodiment that other general-purpose components may be further included in addition to the components shown in FIG. 1 .

The image acquisition unit 110 acquires a 3D medical image and a 2D medical image representing blood vessels, according to an embodiment. According to an embodiment, the image acquisition unit 110 performs computed tomography angiography (CT angiography) or magnetic resonance imaging angiography (MRI angiography) on the object to display blood vessels in the object in three dimensions. image can be obtained. Also, according to an embodiment, the image acquisition unit 110 may perform X-ray angiography on blood vessels in the object to obtain a two-dimensional medical image representing blood vessels in the object in two dimensions. Also, according to an embodiment, the 2D medical image may be an X-ray moving image obtained through fluoroscopy. According to an embodiment, the 3D medical image may be acquired by the image acquisition unit 110 before the user performs a procedure on the object, and the 2D medical image is obtained while the user performs a procedure on the object. It may be acquired by the image acquisition unit 110 in real time. Also, according to an embodiment, the image acquisition unit 110 may acquire a 3D medical image and a 2D medical image representing blood vessels from the outside through a communication unit (not shown). Also, according to an embodiment, the image acquisition unit 110 may acquire a 3D medical image and a 2D medical image stored in advance from a memory (not shown).

According to an embodiment, the matching unit 120 determines a blood vessel region in the 3D medical image corresponding to a partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image.

According to an embodiment, the partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image may be a region to which the contrast agent is administered in the blood vessel. For example, the user may inject a contrast agent into a blood vessel of the object, the image acquisition unit 110 may perform an X-ray angiography examination, and as a result, a 2D medical image may be obtained by displaying a portion of the blood vessel in which the contrast agent is injected. It can be represented as a partial area. Also, according to an embodiment, the partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image may be a region of interest set by a user. Also, according to an embodiment, the partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image may be a region in which the target is located in the blood vessel. For example, when a user inserts a catheter into a blood vessel of an object, a partial region of the blood vessel may be a region in which the catheter is located.

The matching unit 120 may separate or extract the 3D blood vessel region from the 3D medical image, according to an embodiment. That is, the matching unit 120 may separate or extract only the blood vessel region shown in 3D in the 3D medical image. Subsequently, the matching unit 120 may divide the separated 3D blood vessel region into a plurality of sub blood vessel regions.

According to an embodiment, the matching unit 120 may generate a graph corresponding to the 3D blood vessel region based on the branch point of the blood vessel. That is, the matching unit 120 may generate a graph representing a connection relationship between branch points of each blood vessel in the 3D blood vessel region. Subsequently, the matching unit 120 may divide the graph corresponding to the 3D blood vessel region into a plurality of regions according to a predetermined condition. An example of the predetermined condition may be a condition that the sum of lengths between branch points included in each of the plurality of regions is greater than a predetermined threshold value. Accordingly, the matching unit 120 may divide the graph into a plurality of regions, and the three-dimensional blood vessel region corresponding to the graph may be divided into a plurality of sub-vascular regions corresponding to the plurality of regions. A more specific embodiment will be described below with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5 .

The matching unit 120 may separate a partial region of a blood vessel from a 2D medical image, according to an embodiment. That is, the matching unit 120 may separate only a partial region of a blood vessel viewed in two dimensions in a two-dimensional medical image. Also, according to an embodiment, when the 2D medical image is a moving picture composed of a plurality of frames, the matching unit 120 may separate a partial region of the blood vessel based on the 2D medical images corresponding to the plurality of frames. can For example, the matching unit 120 refers to a partial region of a blood vessel displayed in a 2D medical image corresponding to the next frame, and selects the blood vessel from the 2D medical image corresponding to the current frame. Some areas can be separated.

According to an embodiment, the matching unit 120 may determine a sub blood vessel region corresponding to a partial region of a blood vessel in the 2D medical image from among a plurality of sub blood vessel regions divided from the 3D blood vessel region. That is, the matching unit 120 may determine a sub-vascular region having the highest similarity to a partial region of a blood vessel from among the plurality of sub-vascular regions.

According to an embodiment, the matching unit 120 may project the centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vessels on a two-dimensional plane. According to an embodiment, the matching unit 120 may calculate a distance between centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions projected on a 2D plane and a centerline of a partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image. According to an embodiment, the matching unit 120 may calculate the closest distance to the center line of a partial blood vessel region for each of the points constituting the center line of an arbitrary sub blood vessel region, and the matching unit 120 is the point. An average value of the closest distances calculated for each of the sub-vascular regions may be determined as a distance between a center line of an arbitrary sub-vascular region and a central line of a partial blood vessel region.

According to an embodiment, the distance between the center line of a sub blood vessel region among the plurality of sub blood vessel regions and the center line of a partial blood vessel region in the 2D medical image is how to move or rotate the center line of the sub blood vessel region in a 3D space Since it may be different depending on whether or not to do so, the matching unit 120 may perform parallel movement or rotational movement with respect to the center line of an arbitrary sub-vascular region a predetermined number of times by varying the numerical value within a predetermined range. Subsequently, the matching unit 120 may calculate the distance between the center line of the parallel or rotationally moved arbitrary sub blood vessel region and the center line of the partial region of the blood vessel for a preset number of times, and as a result, the matching unit 120 performs the preset number of times. A distance having the smallest value among the calculated distances may be determined as a distance between the center line of an arbitrary sub blood vessel region and a center line of a partial blood vessel region. Also, according to an exemplary embodiment, the matching unit 120 may store information on a parallel movement or a rotational movement with respect to an arbitrary sub-vascular region corresponding to a distance having the smallest value in the form of a matrix.

According to an embodiment, in order to more easily calculate the distance between the centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions and the centerline of the partial region of the blood vessel, the matching unit 120 may perform a distance map ( You can create a distance transform such as a distance map or a distance field. According to an embodiment, the distance transformation may be expressed as an image, and each pixel in the image may include position information about a centerline of a partial region of a blood vessel. Accordingly, the matching unit 120 converts the distance between the centerline of the partial region of the blood vessel and the centerline of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions between the central lines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions and the central line of the partial region of the blood vessel. It can speed up the calculation of distance.

The matching unit 120 may calculate a distance between the centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions and the centerline of a partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image, and the plurality of sub-vascular regions, according to an embodiment. Among them, a sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from a partial region of a blood vessel may be determined. Accordingly, the matching unit 120 may determine the sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from the partial region of the blood vessel as the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image having the highest similarity to the partial region of the blood vessel. A more specific embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 7 .

The matching unit 120 may match a blood vessel region in the 3D medical image with the highest similarity to a partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image to the 2D medical image, according to an embodiment. According to an embodiment, the matching unit 120 may determine conversion information for matching the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image to the partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image. An example of the transformation information may be a transformation matrix. According to an embodiment, the matching unit 120 is configured to perform a parallel movement or rotational movement performed on a sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from a partial region of a blood vessel among a plurality of sub-vascular regions, A transformation matrix for matching the sub-vascular region in the 3D medical image to the partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image may be determined. That is, the matching unit 120 adds or subtracts a change amount within a preset range with respect to each numerical value of the matrix indicating the parallel or rotational movement performed with respect to the sub-vascular region to convert the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image into two dimensions. A transformation matrix for more precisely matching to a partial region of a blood vessel in a medical image may be determined. Accordingly, the matching unit 120 may match the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image with the highest similarity to the partial region of the blood vessel to the partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image by using the determined transformation matrix. Also, the matching unit 120 may generate a registered image in which the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image is matched to the 2D medical image.

Also, according to an embodiment, the matching unit 120 may match a blood vessel region wider than a blood vessel region in the 3D medical image with the highest similarity to a partial region of the blood vessel to the 2D medical image according to the user's selection. there is.

The medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may selectively determine a blood vessel area in a 3D medical image corresponding to a partial area of an imaged blood vessel and generate a matched image, so a 3D roadmap capable of correcting various movements of an object. ) can be provided. In addition, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may express a partial region of a selectively contrasted blood vessel as a three-dimensional blood vessel structure through a matched image, thereby improving the convenience of a procedure on an object.

2 is a block diagram of a medical imaging apparatus 200 according to another exemplary embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 2 , the medical imaging apparatus 200 includes an image acquisition unit 210 , a matching unit 220 , a display unit 230 , an input unit 240 , and a storage unit 250 , according to an embodiment. may include Since the contents described in FIG. 1 may be applied to the image acquisition unit 210 and the matching unit 220 , a description of overlapping contents will be omitted. Also, each component included in the medical imaging apparatus 200 may be connected by various connection methods 260 such as wired or wireless.

The display 230 may display the matched image generated by the matching unit 220 , according to an embodiment. For example, the display unit 230 may display a matched image or display a user interface (UI) or graphic user interface (GUI) related to function setting of the medical imaging apparatus 200 .

The display unit 230 may include a liquid crystal display, a thin film transistor-liquid crystal display, an organic light-emitting diode, a flexible display, and a three-dimensional display. (3D display) and may include at least one of an electrophoretic display (electrophoretic display). The medical imaging apparatus 200 may include two or more display units 230 according to an implementation form of the medical imaging apparatus 200 .

The input unit 240 may receive a command for controlling the medical imaging apparatus 200 from a user, according to an embodiment. The input unit 240 may receive, from a user, a command for matching the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image to the 2D medical image, according to an embodiment. Also, according to an exemplary embodiment, the display unit 230 and the input unit 240 may provide a user with a user interface (UI) for operating the medical imaging apparatus 200 . The display unit 230 may display a UI.

The storage unit 250 may store a 2D medical image or a 3D medical image acquired by the image acquisition unit 210 , according to an embodiment. Also, the registered image generated by the matching unit 220 may be stored.

3 is a diagram for explaining an embodiment in which the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 extracts a 3D blood vessel region or a centerline of a 3D blood vessel region from a 3D medical image.

The medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may extract or separate the 3D blood vessel region 310 representing only the blood vessel region from the 3D medical image of the object. Also, according to an embodiment, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may acquire the 3D blood vessel region 310 as a 3D medical image of the object.

Also, according to an embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may extract the 3D blood vessel region 310 or the center line 320 corresponding to the 3D blood vessel region 310 from the 3D medical image.

4 and 5 are diagrams for explaining an embodiment in which the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 divides a 3D blood vessel region into a plurality of sub blood vessel regions.

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may divide the 3D blood vessel region 310 into a plurality of sub blood vessel regions 412 , 414 416 , 418 , 420 , 422 according to an embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 5 , the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may generate a graph 510 indicating a connection relationship between branch points of each blood vessel in the 3D blood vessel region 310 of FIG. 3 . Also, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may generate a graph 510 indicating a connection relationship between branch points of each blood vessel within the center line 320 corresponding to the 3D blood vessel region 310 of FIG. 3 . That is, as shown in FIG. 5 , the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 determine 86 branch points of each blood vessel in the 3D blood vessel region 310 and generate a graph 510 showing a connection relationship between the 86 branch points. can Subsequently, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may divide the graph 510 into a plurality of regions 512 , 514,516 , 518 , 520 and 522 according to a predetermined criterion. According to an embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may be configured to, when the number of branch points in a certain area divided based on the predetermined branch point or the sum of lengths between branch points in the certain area is greater than a predetermined threshold value, the arbitrary area may be determined as one of the plurality of regions. Accordingly, the medical imaging apparatus 100 and 200 may divide the graph 510 into a plurality of regions 512 , 514,516 , 518 , 520 and 522 , and the medical imaging apparatus 100 and 200 may divide the graph 510 into a plurality of 3D blood vessel regions 310 corresponding to the graph 510 . It may be divided into a plurality of sub-vascular regions 412, 414, 416, 418, 420, 422 corresponding to regions 512, 514,516, 518, 520, and 522 of .

FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining an embodiment in which the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 separates a partial region of a blood vessel from a 2D medical image, according to an exemplary embodiment.

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may extract or separate the partial region 620 of the blood vessel from the 2D medical image 610 according to an embodiment. Also, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may extract a centerline 630 corresponding to the partial region 620 of the blood vessel from the partial region 620 of the blood vessel.

7 illustrates an exemplary embodiment in which the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 determines a sub-vascular region having the highest similarity to a partial region of a blood vessel in a 2D medical image from among a plurality of sub-vascular regions.

The medical imaging apparatus 100 and 200 may extract centerlines 712 , 714 , 716 , 718 , 720 and 722 from each of the plurality of sub blood vessel regions 412 , 414 , 416 , 418 , 420 and 422 of FIG. 4 . That is, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may extract centerlines 712 , 714 , 716 , 718 , 720 and 722 corresponding to each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions 412 , 414 , 416 , 418, 420 and 422 .

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 determines a sub-vascular region corresponding to the partial region 620 of the blood vessel, according to an embodiment, so as to determine the center line 630 corresponding to the partial region 620 of the blood vessel and the plurality of sub-vessels. Distances between centerlines 712 , 714 , 716 , 718 , 720 , and 722 corresponding to each of the regions 412 , 414 , 416 , 418 , 420 , and 422 may be calculated. Also, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may perform parallel or rotational movements with respect to the center lines 712 , 714 , 716 , 718 , 720 and 722 by a preset number of times by varying the numerical values within a preset range. Subsequently, the medical imaging apparatus 100 and 200 may project each of the parallel or rotationally moved center lines 712 , 714 , 716 , 718 , 720 and 722 to a 2D plane. Subsequently, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may calculate the distances between each of the center lines 712 , 714 , 716 , 718 , 720 and 722 projected on the two-dimensional plane and the center line 630 corresponding to the partial region 620 of the blood vessel a preset number of times. The imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may compare the distances calculated a preset number of times to determine the center line 630 and the center line 718 having the smallest distance. Accordingly, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may determine the sub-vascular region 418 corresponding to the center line 718 as the sub-vascular region most similar to the partial region 620 of the blood vessel.

Also, according to an exemplary embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 generates a distance transform 705 with respect to a centerline 630 corresponding to a partial region 620 of a blood vessel, and the distance transform 705 and the centerlines 712,714,716,718,720,722 ), it is possible to more easily calculate the distance between the center lines 712 , 714 , 716 , 718 , 720 , 722 and the center line 630 .

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining an embodiment of matching a blood vessel region in a 3D medical image to a 2D medical image, according to an embodiment.

7 , according to an embodiment, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 are sub-vascular regions in the 3D medical image most similar to the partial region 620 of the blood vessels extracted from the 2D medical image 610 . Region 418 may be determined.

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may match the sub-vascular region 418 to the partial region 620 of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image 610 , according to an embodiment. Accordingly, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may generate a registered image 810 in which the sub-vascular region 418 is matched to the 2D medical image 610 .

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may determine a transformation matrix for matching the sub-vascular region 418 to the partial region 620 of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image 610 , according to an embodiment. According to an exemplary embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may determine a transformation matrix based on information on a translational or rotational movement performed with respect to the center line 718 . That is, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 add or subtract a change amount within a preset range with respect to each value of the matrix representing the parallel or rotational movement performed with respect to the center line 718 to divide the sub-vascular region 418 by 2 A transformation matrix for more precisely matching the partial region 620 of the blood vessel in the 3D medical image 610 may be determined. Accordingly, the matching unit 120 may register the sub-vascular region 418 to the 2D medical image 610 using the determined transformation matrix.

9 is a diagram for explaining a medical image processing method performed by the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200, according to an exemplary embodiment.

The method shown in FIG. 9 may be performed by each component of the medical imaging apparatus 100 and 200 of FIG. 1 or 2 , and a redundant description will be omitted.

In operation s910 , the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 acquire a 3D medical image and a 2D medical image representing blood vessels. According to an exemplary embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 performs a computed tomography angiography or a magnetic resonance imaging angiography (MRI angiography) on the object to display the blood vessels in the object in three dimensions. Medical images can be obtained. Also, according to an exemplary embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may obtain a two-dimensional medical image representing blood vessels in the object in two dimensions by performing an X-ray angiography examination on blood vessels in the object. Also, according to an exemplary embodiment, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may acquire a 3D medical image and a 2D medical image representing blood vessels from the outside. Also, according to an exemplary embodiment, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may acquire a 3D medical image and a 2D medical image stored in advance from an internal memory.

In operation S920 , the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 determines a blood vessel region in the 3D medical image corresponding to a partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image.

According to an embodiment, the partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image may be a region to which the contrast agent is administered in the blood vessel. For example, the user may inject a contrast agent into a blood vessel of the object, the image acquisition unit 110 may perform an X-ray angiography examination, and as a result, a 2D medical image may be obtained by displaying a portion of the blood vessel in which the contrast agent is injected. It can be represented as a partial area. Also, according to an embodiment, the partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image may be a region of interest set by a user. Also, according to an embodiment, the partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image may be a region in which the target is located in the blood vessel. For example, when a user inserts a catheter into a blood vessel of an object, a partial region of the blood vessel may be a region in which the catheter is located.

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may separate or extract a 3D blood vessel region from a 3D medical image, according to an embodiment. That is, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may separate or extract only the blood vessel region viewed in 3D from the 3D medical image. Subsequently, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may divide the separated 3D blood vessel region into a plurality of sub blood vessel regions.

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may generate a graph representing a connection relationship between branch points of each blood vessel in the 3D blood vessel region, according to an embodiment. Subsequently, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may divide the graph corresponding to the 3D blood vessel region into a plurality of regions according to a predetermined condition. An example of the predetermined condition may be a condition that the sum of lengths between branch points included in each of the plurality of regions is greater than a predetermined threshold value. Accordingly, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may divide the graph into a plurality of regions, and the 3D blood vessel region corresponding to the graph may be divided into a plurality of sub-vascular regions corresponding to the plurality of regions.

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may separate or extract a partial region of a blood vessel from a 2D medical image, according to an embodiment. That is, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may separate or extract only a partial region of a blood vessel appearing in two dimensions in a two-dimensional medical image.

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may determine a sub-vascular region corresponding to a partial region of a blood vessel in the 2D medical image from among a plurality of sub-vascular regions divided from the 3D blood vessel region, according to an embodiment. That is, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may determine a sub-vascular region that has the highest similarity to a partial region of a blood vessel from among the plurality of sub-vascular regions.

According to an embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may project the centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vessels on a 2D plane. The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may calculate a distance between centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions projected on a two-dimensional plane and a centerline of a partial region of the blood vessel, according to an embodiment. According to an exemplary embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may calculate the closest distance to the center line of a partial region of a blood vessel for each point constituting the center line of an arbitrary sub blood vessel region, and the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 ) may determine an average value of the closest distances calculated for each point as a distance between the center line of an arbitrary sub blood vessel region and the center line of a partial blood vessel region.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may perform parallel or rotational movement with respect to the center line of an arbitrary sub-vascular region a predetermined number of times by changing the numerical value within a predetermined range. Subsequently, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may calculate the distance between the center line of an arbitrary sub-vascular region that is parallel or rotationally moved and the center line of a partial region of the blood vessel for a preset number of times, and as a result, the medical imaging apparatus 100, 200 A distance having the smallest value among distances calculated a set number of times may be determined as a distance between a center line of an arbitrary sub-vascular region and a center line of a partial region of a blood vessel.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may more easily calculate a distance between a centerline of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions and a centerline of a partial region of a blood vessel in the 2D medical image. It is possible to generate a distance transform such as a distance map or a distance field for . According to an embodiment, the distance transformation may be expressed as an image, and each pixel in the image may include position information about a centerline of a partial region of a blood vessel. Accordingly, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 uses a distance conversion with respect to the centerline of a partial region of a blood vessel and a centerline of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions between the centerline of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions and the centerline of the partial region of the blood vessel. It can speed up the calculation of distance.

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may calculate a distance between the centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions and the centerline of a partial region of the blood vessel, and among the plurality of sub-vascular regions, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may calculate the A sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from a partial region may be determined. Accordingly, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may determine the sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from the partial region of the blood vessel as the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image having the highest similarity to the partial region of the blood vessel.

In operation S930, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 match the blood vessel region to a partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image.

The medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may match a blood vessel region in the 3D medical image with the highest similarity to a partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image to the 2D medical image, according to an embodiment. According to an embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may determine conversion information for matching the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image to the partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image. An example of the transformation information may be a transformation matrix. According to an embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may be configured based on information on a parallel or rotational movement performed on a sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from a partial region of a blood vessel among a plurality of sub-vascular regions. , a transformation matrix for matching the sub-vascular region in the 3D medical image to the partial region of the blood vessel may be determined. That is, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 add or subtract a change amount within a preset range for each value of a matrix indicating a parallel or rotational movement performed on the sub-vascular region to divide the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image by 2 A transformation matrix for more precisely matching to a partial region of a blood vessel in a 3D medical image may be determined. Accordingly, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may match the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image with the highest similarity to the partial region of the blood vessel to the 2D medical image by using the determined transformation matrix. Also, the medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 may generate a registered image in which the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image is matched to the 2D medical image.

Also, according to an embodiment, the medical imaging apparatus 100 or 200 may register a blood vessel region wider than a blood vessel region in the 3D medical image having the highest similarity to a partial region of the blood vessel to the 2D medical image according to the user's selection. can

10 and 11 are diagrams illustrating an X-ray apparatus 300 according to an exemplary embodiment.

The medical imaging apparatuses 100 and 200 of FIGS. 1 and 2 may perform some or all of the functions performed by the X-ray apparatus 300 of FIGS. 10 and 11 . The image acquisition units 110 and 210 of FIGS. 1 and 2 may correspond to at least one of the detection unit 108, a data acquisition circuit (DAS; Data Acquisitino System) 116, and the data transmission unit 152 of FIGS. 10 and 11 . . Also, the matching units 120 and 220 of FIGS. 1 and 2 may correspond to the image processing unit 126 of FIG. 11 . Also, the display unit 230 of FIG. 2 may correspond to the display unit 153 of FIG. 11 , the input unit 240 of FIG. 2 may correspond to the input unit 128 of FIG. 1 , and the storage of FIG. The unit 250 may correspond to the storage unit 124 of FIG. 11 .

Referring to FIG. 10 , the X-ray apparatus 300 may include the C-arm 102 having a C shape, and may continuously perform X-ray imaging for a predetermined time. The X-ray source 106 is provided at one end of the C-arm 102 , and the detector 108 is provided at the other end of the C-arm 102 . The C-arm 102 may connect the X-ray source 106 and the detector 108 and adjust positions of the X-ray source 106 and the detector 108 . Although not shown in FIG. 10 , the C-arm 102 may be coupled to the ceiling, coupled to the floor, or coupled to both the ceiling and the floor. Also, the X-ray apparatus 300 may further include a table 105 on which the object 10 may be positioned.

The X-ray source 106 is configured to generate and irradiate X-rays. The detector 108 is configured to detect X-rays irradiated from the X-ray source 106 and transmitted through the object 10 . A medical image may be obtained based on the X-rays detected by the detector 108 . In this case, the X-ray source 106 may radiate X-rays to the object 10 while rotating. The X-ray source 106 may be rotated by the rotation of the C-arm 102 , and the detector 108 may also detect X-rays passing through the object 10 while rotating together with the X-ray source 106 .

The user may photograph the object 10 at various positions or at various angles by adjusting the position of at least one of the C-arm 102 and the table 105 . For example, the user may acquire a medical image by photographing the object 10 while rotating or moving at least one of the C-arm 102 and the table 105 up, down, left, and right. Accordingly, the user can more efficiently photograph the object 10 for a continuous period of time by using the X-ray apparatus 300 compared to a general fixed X-ray apparatus.

The X-ray apparatus 300 may be usefully used when it is necessary to acquire a plurality of X-ray images acquired at successive times or to acquire an X-ray video. For example, the X-ray apparatus 300 may be usefully used in a medical procedure such as X-ray angiograpy or a surgical operation. When the doctor needs to precisely examine the patient for the diagnosis of the patient with vascular disease, the doctor continuously performs X-ray imaging during the examination time. In addition, the state of the patient's blood vessels is examined through a fluoroscopy image that is an X-ray video acquired in real time. Therefore, in a medical procedure such as angiography, it is necessary to continuously irradiate X-rays to a subject during a procedure time and acquire a fluoroscopy image.

For example, in the case of angiography, a guide wire may be installed in the subject area and X-ray imaging may be performed, or a drug may be injected using a thin needle or catheter and X-ray imaging may be performed. can proceed.

As another example, in the case of a surgical procedure, when inserting a catheter, a stent, an injection needle, etc. into the body to proceed with the procedure, a user such as a doctor must check whether the catheter is properly inserted into the target point of the object. Therefore, the user may acquire a fluoroscopy image during the procedure, and proceed with the procedure while confirming the location of a target object, such as a catheter, through the acquired fluoroscopy image.

The X-ray apparatus 300 may include an interventional X-ray apparatus, an interventional angiography X-ray apparatus, or an X-ray apparatus for a surgical procedure (Surgical C-arm X-ray). there is.

According to an embodiment, the X-ray apparatus 300 may acquire a 3D medical image representing blood vessels in the object in 3D. Also, the X-ray apparatus 300 may perform an X-ray angiography examination on blood vessels in the object to obtain a two-dimensional medical image representing blood vessels in the object in two dimensions. That is, the user may inject a contrast agent into the blood vessel of the object, and the X-ray apparatus 300 may perform an X-ray angiography test to obtain a two-dimensional medical image showing a portion in which the contrast agent is injected into the blood vessel. . Also, the X-ray apparatus 300 may determine a blood vessel region in the 3D medical image corresponding to a partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image. Subsequently, the X-ray apparatus 300 may match the blood vessel region in the 3D medical image to a partial region of the blood vessel in the 2D medical image.

Referring to FIG. 11 , the X-ray apparatus 300 includes an X-ray source 106 , a detector 108 , and a C-arm 102 connecting the X-ray source 106 and the detector 108 . In addition, the X-ray apparatus 300 includes a rotation driver 151 , a data acquisition circuit 116 , a data transmitter 152 , a table 105 , a controller 118 , a storage 124 , an image processing unit 126 , and an input unit. 128 , a display unit 153 , and a communication unit 132 may be further included.

The object 10 may be positioned on the table 105 . The table 105 according to some embodiments is movable in a predetermined direction (eg, at least one of up, down, left, and right), and the movement may be controlled by the controller 118 .

The X-ray source 106 and the detector 108 connected to the C-arm 102 and disposed to face each other have a predetermined field of view (FOV). When the X-ray source 106 and the detector 108 are rotated by the C-arm 102, the FOV will change accordingly.

The X-ray apparatus 300 may further include an anti-scatter grid 114 positioned on the detector 108 .

The X-ray radiation reaching the detector 108 includes not only attenuated primary radiation that forms a useful image, but also scattered radiation that degrades the image quality. An anti-scatter grid 114 may be positioned between the patient and the detector (or photosensitive film) to transmit mostly the main radiation and attenuate the scattered radiation.

For example, the anti-scatter grid may be made of strips of lead foil, a solid polymer material or a solid polymer and fiber composite material, etc. It may be configured in a form in which interspace materials are alternately stacked. However, the shape of the anti-scattering grid is not necessarily limited thereto.

The C-arm 102 may receive a driving signal and power from the rotation driving unit 151 and may rotate the X-ray source 106 and the detection unit 108 at a predetermined rotation speed.

The X-ray source 106 may generate and emit X-rays by receiving voltage and current from a power distribution unit (PDU) through a high voltage generator (not shown). When the high voltage generator applies a predetermined voltage (hereinafter referred to as a tube voltage), the X-ray source 106 may generate X-rays having a plurality of energy spectra corresponding to the predetermined tube voltage.

X-rays generated by the X-ray source 106 may be emitted in a predetermined form by a collimator 112 .

The detector 108 may be positioned to face the X-ray source 106 . The detector 108 may include a plurality of X-ray detection elements. A single X-ray detection element may form a single channel, but is not limited thereto.

The detector 108 may detect X-rays generated from the X-ray source 106 and transmitted through the object 10 , and generate an electric signal corresponding to the detected intensity of the X-rays.

The detection unit 108 may include an indirect method for converting radiation into light and detecting it and a direct method for detecting by converting radiation directly into electric charge. The indirect detection unit may use a scintillator. In addition, the direct detection unit may use a photon counting detector (photon counting detector). The data acquisition circuit 116 may be connected to the detection unit 108 . The electrical signal generated by the detector 108 may be collected by the DAS 116 . The electrical signal generated by the detection unit 108 may be collected by the data acquisition circuit 116 by wire or wirelessly. In addition, the electrical signal generated by the detector 108 may be provided to an analog/digital converter (not shown) through an amplifier (not shown).

According to a slice thickness or the number of slices, only some data collected from the detector 108 may be provided to the image processor 126 , or only some data may be selected by the image processor 126 .

This digital signal may be provided to the image processing unit 126 through the data transmission unit 152 . This digital signal may be transmitted to the image processing unit 126 by wire or wirelessly through the data transmission unit 152 .

The controller 118 according to some embodiments may control the operation of each module included in the X-ray apparatus 300 . For example, the control unit 118 may include the table 105 , the rotation driving unit 151 , the collimator 112 , the data acquisition circuit 116 , the storage unit 124 , the image processing unit 126 , the input unit 128 , and the display. Operations of the unit 153 and the communication unit 132 may be controlled.

The image processing unit 126 receives data (eg, raw data before processing) obtained from the data acquisition circuit 116 through the data transmission unit 152 and performs pre-processing. can

The pre-processing may include, for example, a process of correcting sensitivity non-uniformity between channels, a process of correcting a signal loss due to a sharp decrease in signal intensity or an X-ray absorber such as a metal, and the like.

Data preprocessed by the image processor 126 may be referred to as raw data or projection data. Such projection data may be stored in the storage unit 124 together with imaging conditions (eg, tube voltage, imaging angle, etc.) at the time of data acquisition.

The projection data may be a set of data values corresponding to the intensity of X-rays that have passed through the object. For convenience of description, a set of projection data simultaneously acquired at the same shooting angle for all channels is referred to as a projection data set or measured data.

The storage unit 124 includes a flash memory type, a hard disk type, a multimedia card micro type, a card type memory (SD, XD memory, etc.), a RAM (RAM). ; Random Access Memory SRAM (Static Random Access Memory), ROM (Read-Only Memory), EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read-Only Memory), PROM (Programmable Read-Only Memory) magnetic memory, magnetic disk, optical disk It may include at least one type of storage medium.

Also, the image processor 126 may acquire a reconstructed image of the object based on the acquired measurement data. The image processing unit 126 may obtain a reconstructed image obtained by imaging the ROI from the measurement data. The ROI is an area that the X-ray apparatus 300 can reconstruct into an image. Such a reconstructed image may be a 3D image. In other words, the image processor 126 may generate a 3D image of the object by using a cone beam reconstruction method or the like based on the obtained measurement data.

An external input for an X-ray tomography condition, an image processing condition, etc. may be received through the input unit 128 . For example, X-ray tomography conditions include a plurality of tube voltages, energy value setting of a plurality of X-rays, imaging protocol selection, image reconstruction method selection, FOV area setting, ROI area setting, number of slices, slice thickness, It may include setting image post-processing parameters, and the like. In addition, the image processing condition may include image resolution, image attenuation coefficient setting, image combination ratio setting, and the like.

The input unit 128 may include a device for receiving a predetermined input from the outside. For example, the input unit 128 may include a microphone, a keyboard, a mouse, a joystick, a touch pad, a touch pan, a voice, a gesture recognition device, and the like.

The display unit 153 may display the image reconstructed by the image processing unit 126 .

Transmission and reception of data, power, etc. between the aforementioned elements may be performed using at least one of wired, wireless, and optical communication.

The communication unit 132 may communicate with an external device, an external medical device, or the like through the server 134 or the like. Alternatively, the X-ray apparatus 300 may be connected to a workstation configured to control the X-ray apparatus 300 through the communication unit 132 . This will be described later with reference to FIG. 12 .

12 is a diagram showing the configuration of the communication unit 133 of FIG. 11 .

The communication unit 132 may be connected to the network 15 by wire or wirelessly to communicate with the external server 134 , the medical device 136 , the portable device 138 , or the workstation 139 . The communication unit 132 may exchange data with a hospital server connected through a picture archiving and communication system (PACS) or other medical devices in the hospital.

Also, the communication unit 132 may perform data communication with the portable device 138 and the like according to a digital imaging and communications in medicine (DICOM) standard.

The communication unit 132 may transmit/receive data related to diagnosis of an object through the network 15 . Also, the communication unit 132 may transmit/receive a medical image obtained by the medical device 136 such as an MRI apparatus or an X-ray apparatus.

Furthermore, the communication unit 132 may receive the patient's diagnosis history or treatment schedule from the server 134 and utilize it for clinical diagnosis of the patient. In addition, the communication unit 132 may perform data communication with the server 134 or the medical device 136 in the hospital, as well as the portable device 138 of the user or patient, the workstation 139, and the like.

In addition, it is possible to transmit equipment abnormality and quality control status information to a system manager or service person through the network, and receive feedback on it.

The workstation 139 may exist in a space physically separated from the X-ray apparatus 300 . The X-ray apparatus 300 may be in a shield room, and the workstation 139 may be in a console room. The shield room refers to a space in which the X-ray apparatus 300 is located to photograph an object, and may be variously referred to as an 'imaging room', an 'examination room', an 'inspection room', or the like. Also, the console room is a space in which a user is located to control the X-ray apparatus 300 , and refers to a space separated from the shield room. The console room and the shield room may be separated from each other through a shielding wall to protect the user from magnetic fields, radiation, RF signals, etc. transmitted from the shield room.

The device according to the above-described embodiments includes a processor, a memory for storing and executing program data, a permanent storage such as a disk drive, a communication port for communicating with an external device, a touch panel, a key, a button, etc. It may include the same user interface device and the like. Methods implemented as software modules or algorithms may be stored on a computer-readable recording medium as computer-readable codes or program instructions executable on the processor. Here, the computer-readable recording medium includes a magnetic storage medium (eg, read-only memory (ROM), random-access memory (RAM), floppy disk, hard disk, etc.) and an optically readable medium (eg, CD-ROM). ), and DVD (Digital Versatile Disc)). The computer-readable recording medium may be distributed among network-connected computer systems, so that the computer-readable code may be stored and executed in a distributed manner. The medium may be readable by a computer, stored in a memory, and executed on a processor.

This embodiment may be represented by functional block configurations and various processing steps. These functional blocks may be implemented in any number of hardware and/or software configurations that perform specific functions. For example, an embodiment may be an integrated circuit configuration, such as memory, processing, logic, look-up table, etc., capable of executing various functions by the control of one or more microprocessors or other control devices. can be hired Similar to how components may be implemented as software programming or software components, this embodiment includes various algorithms implemented in a combination of data structures, processes, routines, or other programming constructs, including C, C++, Java ( Java), assembler, etc. may be implemented in a programming or scripting language. Functional aspects may be implemented in an algorithm running on one or more processors. In addition, the present embodiment may employ the prior art for electronic environment setting, signal processing, and/or data processing. Terms such as “mechanism”, “element”, “means” and “configuration” may be used broadly and are not limited to mechanical and physical configurations. The term may include the meaning of a series of routines of software in connection with a processor or the like.

The specific implementations described in this embodiment are examples, and do not limit the technical scope in any way. For brevity of the specification, descriptions of conventional electronic components, control systems, software, and other functional aspects of the systems may be omitted. In addition, the connection or connection members of lines between the components shown in the drawings illustratively represent functional connections and/or physical or circuit connections, and in an actual device, various functional connections, physical connections that are replaceable or additional may be referred to as connections, or circuit connections.

In this specification (especially in the claims), the use of the term "above" and similar referential terms may be used in both the singular and the plural. In addition, when a range is described, individual values within the range are included (unless there is a description to the contrary), and each individual value constituting the range is described in the detailed description. Finally, the steps constituting the method may be performed in an appropriate order unless the order is explicitly stated or there is no description to the contrary. It is not necessarily limited to the order of description of the above steps. The use of all examples or exemplary terms (eg, etc.) is merely for describing the technical idea in detail, and the scope is not limited by the examples or exemplary terms unless limited by the claims. In addition, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modifications, combinations, and changes may be made in accordance with design conditions and factors within the scope of the appended claims or their equivalents.

Claims (19)

A method for a medical imaging apparatus to process a medical image, the method comprising:
acquiring a three-dimensional medical image representing blood vessels and a two-dimensional medical image representing the blood vessels;
extracting a 3D blood vessel region from the 3D medical image;
dividing the three-dimensional blood vessel region into a plurality of sub-vascular regions;
extracting a partial region of the blood vessel from the 2D medical image;
selecting a target sub-vascular region having the highest similarity to the partial region in the 2D medical image from among the plurality of divided sub-vascular regions; and
generating a registered image by registering the selected target sub-vascular region in the 3D medical image with the partial region in the 2D medical image;
The method for processing a medical image, wherein the matched image includes only the selected target sub-vascular region except for sub-vascular regions that are not selected in the 3D medical image. The method of claim 1,
Some of the areas are
At least one of a region to which a contrast agent is administered in a blood vessel in the 2D medical image, a region of interest in a blood vessel in the 2D medical image, or a region in which an object is located in a blood vessel in the 2D medical image. area, a method of processing medical images. delete The method of claim 1,
The step of selecting the target sub-vascular region comprises:
performing parallel or rotational movement with respect to centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions;
calculating a distance between center lines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions moved in parallel or rotationally moved and a center line of the partial region; and
The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining a sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from the partial region as the target sub-vascular region. The method of claim 1,
The step of selecting the target sub-vascular region comprises:
projecting the centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions on a two-dimensional plane;
calculating a distance between center lines of each of the projected plurality of sub-vascular areas and a center line of the partial area; and
The method of claim 1 , further comprising determining a sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from the partial region as the target sub-vascular region. 6. The method of claim 5,
The step of calculating the distance is
generating a distance transform with respect to the centerline of the partial region; and
and calculating a distance between center lines of each of the projected plurality of sub-vascular areas and a center line of the partial area by using the distance transformation. The method of claim 1,
The step of generating the matched image comprises:
determining 3D transformation information for matching the target sub-vascular region with the partial region; and
and matching the target sub blood vessel region to the partial region in the 2D medical image based on the 3D transformation information. The method of claim 1,
storing the registered image in which the target sub-vascular region is matched to the partial region in the 2D medical image; and
Further comprising the step of displaying the registered image, the medical image processing method. The method of claim 1,
The three-dimensional medical image is an image obtained through CT angiography before an operation on the object, and the two-dimensional medical image is an image obtained through X-ray angiography during an operation on the object. An image obtained, a method of processing a medical image. an image acquisition unit configured to acquire a three-dimensional medical image representing blood vessels and a two-dimensional medical image representing the blood vessels; and
extracting a three-dimensional blood vessel region from the three-dimensional medical image,
dividing the three-dimensional blood vessel region into a plurality of sub-vascular regions;
extracting a partial region of the blood vessel from the two-dimensional medical image,
selecting a target sub-vascular region having the highest similarity to the partial region in the 2D medical image from among the plurality of divided sub-vascular regions;
and a matching unit configured to generate a registered image by matching the selected target sub-vascular region in the 3D medical image to the partial region in the 2D medical image;
The registered image includes only the selected target sub-vascular region except for the unselected sub-vascular region in the 3D medical image. 11. The method of claim 10,
Some of the areas are
At least one of a region to which a contrast agent is administered in a blood vessel in the 2D medical image, a region of interest in a blood vessel in the 2D medical image, or a region in which an object is located in a blood vessel in the 2D medical image. area, medical imaging equipment. delete 11. The method of claim 10,
The matching part,
Parallel movement or rotational movement is performed with respect to the centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions, and a distance between the centerlines of each of the parallel-moved or rotationally moved plurality of sub-vascular regions and the centerline of the partial region is performed. , and determining a sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from the partial region as the target sub-vascular region. 11. The method of claim 10,
The matching part,
Projecting the centerlines of each of the plurality of sub-vascular regions on a two-dimensional plane, calculating a distance between the centerlines of each of the projected plurality of sub-vascular regions and the centerline of the partial region, and and determining, as the target sub-vascular region, a sub-vascular region having the smallest distance from the partial region. 15. The method of claim 14,
The matching part,
Generating a distance transform for the centerline of the partial region, and using the distance transformation to calculate a distance between the centerlines of each of the projected plurality of sub-vascular regions and the centerline of the partial region video device. 11. The method of claim 10,
The matching part,
determining 3D transformation information for matching the target sub-vascular region with the partial region, and matching the target sub-vascular region to the partial region in the 2D medical image based on the 3D transformation information video device. 11. The method of claim 10,
a storage unit configured to store the registered image in which the target sub-vascular region is matched to the partial region in the 2D medical image; and
The medical imaging apparatus further comprising; a display unit for displaying the matched image. 11. The method of claim 10,
The three-dimensional medical image is an image obtained through CT angiography before an operation on the object, and the two-dimensional medical image is an image obtained through X-ray angiography during an operation on the object. An image to be acquired, a medical imaging device. A computer-readable recording medium recording a program for executing the method of any one of claims 1, 2, and 4 to 9 on a computer.

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