Automated Classification of Slice Positions for Chest X-ray CT Images: An Approach by Feature Extraction

Abstract

We present a procedure to automatically classify the slice positions in chest X-ray CT images for the purpose of increasing the true-positive candidates of lymphnodes and also decreasing the false-positive ones detected by our algorithm developed previously. Image features determined from the position and the shape of vessel and trachea on the CT slices were extracted in our approach. The classification of the slices into three categories (A to C) was successful by use of the trachea information. Detailed classification into nine categories in terms of the vessel information was fairly good for A and B categories (93%), but it was difficult to classify in the C category, which demonstrates the necessity of a new approach to the C as shown in the following paper of this issue.