A time-saving and facilitating approach for segmentation of anatomically defined cortical regions: MRI volumetry

Gronenschild, Ed H.B.M.; Burgmans, Saartje; Smeets, Floortje; Vuurman, Eric F.P.M.; Uylings, Harry B.M.; Jolles, Jelle

doi:10.1016/j.pscychresns.2009.10.003

« Previous Next »Psychiatry Research: Neuroimaging
Volume 181, Issue 3 , Pages 211-218, 30 March 2010

A time-saving and facilitating approach for segmentation of anatomically defined cortical regions: MRI volumetry

Ed H.B.M. Gronenschild
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON), Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Corresponding author. Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, P.O. Box 616, 6200 MD Maastricht, The Netherlands. Tel.: +31 43 3882244; fax: +31 43 3884170.
Saartje Burgmans
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON), Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
Floortje Smeets
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON), Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
Eric F.P.M. Vuurman
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON), Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
Harry B.M. Uylings
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Department of Anatomy and Neuroscience, VU University Medical Center, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON), Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
Jelle Jolles
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuropsychology, School for Mental Health and Neuroscience, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- European Graduate School of Neuroscience (EURON), Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands

Received 28 October 2008; received in revised form 15 October 2009; accepted 15 October 2009.

Abstract

In this study, we present an accurate, reliable, robust, and time-efficient technique for a semi-automatic segmentation of neuroanatomically defined cortical structures in Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans. It involves manual drawing of the border of a region of interest (ROI), supported by three-dimensional (3D) visualization techniques (rendering), and a subsequent automatic tracing of the gray matter voxels inside the ROI by means of an automatic tissue classifier. The approach has been evaluated on a set of MRI scans of 75 participants selected from the Maastricht Aging Study (MAAS) and applied to cortical brain structures for both the left and right hemispheres, viz., the inferior prefrontal cortex (PFC); the orbital PFC; the dorsolateral PFC; the anterior cingulate cortex; and the posterior cingulate cortex. The use of a 3D surface-rendered brain can be rotated in any direction was invaluable in identifying anatomical landmarks on the basis of gyral and sulcal topography. This resulted in a high accuracy (anatomical correctness) and reliability: the intra-rater intra-class correlation coefficient (ICC) was between 0.96 and 0.99. Furthermore, the obtained time savings were substantial, i.e., up to a factor of 7.5 compared with fully manual segmentations.

Keywords: Human brain, Prefrontal areas, Cingulate cortex, Image processing, Manual editing