Robust unsupervised segmentation of infarct lesion from diffusion tensor MR images using multiscale statistical classification and partial volume voxel reclassification

Manual region tracing method for segmentation of infarction lesions in images from diffusion tensor magnetic resonance imaging (DT-MRI) is usually used in clinical works, but it is time consuming. A new unsupervised method has been developed, which is a multistage procedure, involving image preprocessing, calculation of tensor field and measurement of diffusion anisotropy, segmentation of infarction volume based on adaptive multiscale statistical classification (MSSC), and partial volume voxel reclassification (PVVR). The method accounts for random noise, intensity overlapping, partial volume effect (PVE), and intensity shading artifacts, which always appear in DT-MR images. The proposed method was applied to 20 patients with clinically diagnosed brain infarction by DT-MRI scans. The accuracy and reproducibility in terms of identifying the infarction lesion have been confirmed by clinical experts. This automatic segmentation method is promising not only in detecting the location and the size of infarction lesion in stroke patient but also in quantitatively analyzing diffusion anisotropy of lesion to guide clinical diagnoses and therapy.