next up previous
Next: Bias Field Correction through Up: Segmentation of Brain MR Previous: Experiments

  
Segmentation of Brain MR Images With Bias Field Correction

Since it is a complete approach to segmenting piecewise-constant images, the HMRF-EM framework can be applied to brain MR images. However, MR images are often corrupted by a low-frequency spatially varying artifact known as the bias field. This is mainly caused by the variation of the interaction between the human body and the magnetic field. The bias field can also be due to the differential attenuation of signals and nonlinearities of the sensitivities of the receiver coils, etc. Although such an artifact has little impact on visual diagnosis, the performance of most automatic image analysis techniques, especially intensity-based segmentation, can degrade dramatically. Therefore, a robust, automatic, and inexpensive way of correcting for this artifact is required.

 

Yongyue Zhang
2000-05-11