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UBC Theses and Dissertations

Novel approaches for multi-modal imaging and fusion in orthopaedic research for analysis of bone and joint anatomy and motion Dalvi, Rupin

Abstract

Faced with an increasingly aging and overweight population, our modern societies, particularly in the west, are set to witness a steep rise in various orthopaedic health problems in the coming decades, especially joint diseases such as arthritis. Better understanding of the way bones of the joints work is thus imperative for studying the nature and effects of these diseases and for finding cures. The data obtained from conventional sources such as skin markers and x-ray/fluoroscopy scans are generally useful but quite limited in terms of accuracy, quantification abilities and three-dimensional visualization potential. The continuous increase in the quality and versatility of various modern imaging modalities is enabling many new means for enhanced visualization and analysis of motion data of the joints. In this thesis we make use of ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging to facilitate robust, accurate and efficient analysis of the bones of joints in motion. We achieve this by obtaining motion data using 3D US with high temporal resolution which is then fused with a high spatial resolution, but static MRI volume of the same region (we mostly focus on the knee joint area). Our contributions include novel ways for improved segmentation and localization of the bones from image data. In particular, a highly effective method for improving bone segmentation in MRI volumes by enhancing the contrast at the bone-cartilage interface is proposed. Our contribution also focuses on robust and accurate registration of image data. To achieve this, a new method for stitching US bone volumes is proposed for generating larger fields of view. Further, we also present a novel method for US-MRI bone surface registration. The tools developed during the course of this thesis facilitate orthopaedic research efforts aiming to improving our understanding of the workings of the joints. The tools and methodologies proposed are versatile and expected to be applicable to other applications.

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Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International