EPSCoR DART 3D Reconstruction of Coronary Angiograms
What is this?
Cardiovascular diseases remain one of the leading causes of death globally, making early detection and treatment critical to reducing mortality. Coronary angiography is a fundamental technique that provides detailed visualizations of the coronary anatomy. However, because angiograms are 2D representations of complex 3D structures, they come with significant limitations. Extracting accurate 3D positional data from a single angiogram is especially challenging. To address this, we developed a user-friendly platform that allows for the creation and editing of 3D models of coronary arteries, supporting doctors in pre-surgical planning and preparation.
Why is this important?
Users must supply multiple coronary angiograms of the same patient, each captured from a different angle. The 3D geometry is then reconstructed using the marching cubes algorithm. This model is rendered in an immersive virtual reality (VR) environment, where it can be viewed and edited as needed.
How does this work?
Users can adjust a threshold value that influences the level of detail in the 3D reconstruction. Lower thresholds extract more features but may introduce visual artifacts, while higher thresholds reduce artifacts at the risk of omitting important details.
Once the user is satisfied with the threshold settings, an additional filter can be applied to further minimize visual artifacting.
During model editing, users can freely rotate and translate the reconstruction to better examine points of interest.
Demonstration & In-Depth Explanation
Future developments will focus on expanding filtering options to reduce visual artifacts and integrating fluid dynamic simulations to help doctors better understand blood flow through the vascular structure without invasive measurements.