Anyone but trained professionals may be surprised at how much interpretation and extrapolation needs to be done to understand what’s going on in the X-rays and angiography images. Researchers at University of Montreal’s Hospital Research Centre have developed a novel software that converts those textured, difficult to understand images into much more comprehensive color coded visualizations. The vessel walls, clot itself, and nearby calcification is shown, and there are plans to add additional parameters that can point to tissue that’s particularly strained and at risk of rupture.
The team is also working on technology to address a problem with how pre-op images are combined with fluoroscopy X-rays taken during an intravascular procedure. A problem arises when tools are introduced, but the pre-op images remain as though tools don’t affect them, often confusing the situation. By intelligently updating the pre-op images to take account of the ongoing instrumentation, the investigators hope to provide a more accurate live view of the working area.
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