Tissue detection method for computer aided diagnosis and visualization in the presence of tagging

1. A method for obtaining a tissue volume, comprising the steps of:

inputting a dataset including a plurality of voxels;

initializing a tissue probability volume for the plurality of voxels to a pre-determined value, wherein the pre-determined value indicates an initial uniform probability of a voxel belonging to a tissue material;

updating the tissue probability volume, by one of increasing or decreasing the tissue probability of each of the plurality of voxels, based on whether corresponding intensity values of each of the plurality of voxels match expected tissue intensities; and

generating the tissue volume by combining the updated tissue probability volume and the inputted dataset.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the step of updating further comprises updating the tissue probability volume of each of the plurality of voxels based on corresponding entropy values, wherein the entropy values indicate randomness of corresponding voxels.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the step of updating further comprises updating the tissue probability volume of each of the plurality of voxels based on whether the voxels belong to partial volume regions.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the step of updating further comprises updating the tissue probability volume of each of the plurality of voxels based on whether the voxels are connected to each other.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the step of updating further comprises updating the tissue probability volume of each of the plurality of voxels based on a probability of the voxels being disconnected from each other.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the dataset is an output from one of a computed tomography (CT) scanner, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner, or a positron emission tomography (PET) scanner.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the tissue volume is used for one of computer aided detection (CAD), measurement, or detection of tissues of interest.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the tissues of interest are one of colonic polyps or lung nodules.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising the step of tagging and isolating non-tissue structures, wherein the non-tissue structures are one of bones or liquids.

10. A method for obtaining a tissue volume, comprising the steps of:

scanning an anatomical structure to produce a dataset including a plurality of voxels;

updating a tissue probability volume of each of the plurality of voxels based on a calculated probability of the voxels belonging to a tissue, wherein the calculated probability of the voxels belonging to a tissue is based on whether corresponding intensity values of the voxels match expected tissue intensities; and

generating the tissue volume by combining the updated tissue probability volume and the dataset.

11. The method of claim 10 further comprising initializing the tissue probability volume for the plurality of voxels to a pre-determined value, wherein the pre-determined value indicates equal probability of each of the plurality of voxels belonging to a tissue material or to a non-tissue material.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the calculated probability of the voxels belonging to a tissue is further based on entropy values of the voxels, wherein the entropy values indicate randomness of corresponding voxels.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the calculated probability of the voxels belonging to a tissue is further based on whether the voxels belong to partial volume regions.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein the calculated probability of the voxels belonging to a tissue is further based on whether the voxels are connected to each other.

15. The method of claim 14 , wherein the calculated probability of the voxels belonging to a tissue is further based on a probability of the voxels being disconnected from each other.

16. The method of claim 15 , wherein the step of scanning is performed by one of a computed tomography (CT) scanner, a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner, or a positron emission tomography (PET) scanner.

17. The method of claim 16 , wherein the anatomical structure is a colon.

18. The method of claim 17 , wherein the tissue volume is used for computer aided detection (CAD), measurement, or visualization of colonic polyps of the colon.

19. The method of claim 18 , further comprising the step of tagging and isolating non-tissue structures, wherein the non-tissue structures are one of bones or liquids.

20. A computer system comprising:

a processor; and

a non-transitory program storage device readable by the computer system, embodying a program of instructions executable by the processor to perform method steps for obtaining a tissue volume, the method comprising:

scanning an anatomical structure to produce a dataset including a plurality of voxels;

updating a tissue probability volume of each of the plurality of voxels based on a calculated probability of the voxels belonging to a tissue, wherein the calculated probability of the voxels is based on whether corresponding intensity values of the voxels match expected tissue intensities; and

generating the tissue volume by combining the updated tissue probability volume and the dataset.