Three-dimensional fusion of blood vessel network using automatic registration of shared bifurcation points in multiple ultrasound volumes

Nowadays, we can obtain 3D vascular network information inside a body using a 2D matrix array ultrasound probe. This information is useful for diagnosis or intra-operation. However, Doppler volume is incomplete because obtained volume dimensions are still limited and Doppler signal strength depends on flow direction. Therefore, to obtain complete vascular network, we propose a method for fusion of multiple 3D Doppler volumes using automatic registration of shared bifurcation points. To evaluate the method, 24 Doppler volumes of four human subjects were acquired. We confirmed that the method can automatically fuse Doppler volumes with 0.53 mm in root mean square error.