Name: A 3D Digital Model for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Pulmonary Nodules (Video) | JoVE
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This publication was supported by the Fifth National Traditional Chinese Medicine Clinical Excellent Talents Research Program organized by the National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine (http://www.natcm.gov.cn/renjiaosi/zhengcewenjian/2021-11-04/23082.html).&#160;

NOTE: During the data preprocessing stage, the original DICOM data must be sorted and intercepted to ensure compatibility with various devices and consistent results. Adequate adjustable capacity must be reserved for intensity processing, and a continuous 3D perspective is essential for observation. In this protocol, a methodical description of the research approach is provided, detailing a case involving an 84-year-old female patient presenting with pulmonary nodules. This patient provided informed consent for her diagn...

3D Reconstruction for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Pulmonary Nodules

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Different LDCT devices have significant differences in the DICOM image sequences they output, especially in terms of the file system management. Therefore, to reconstruct the key 3D digital model of a pulmonary nodule in the later stages of the protocol, the data preprocessing step is particularly important. In the data preparation and preprocessing stage (step 1.2.2), the sequence z-axis coordinate can be correctly sorted by using the sequence shown in Figure 1, which can also be used to pr...

The global incidence of pulmonary nodules is variable, but it is generally estimated that about 30% of adults have at least one pulmonary nodule visible on chest radiographs1. The incidence of pulmonary nodules is higher in specific populations, such as heavy smokers and those with a history of lung cancer or other lung diseases. It is important to note that not all pulmonary nodules are malignant, but a thorough evaluation is necessary to rule out malignancy2. The early detection and diagnosis of lung cancer are crucial for improving survival rates, and regular screening with low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) is recommended for high-risk individuals. Many AI-driven pulmonary nodule detection and recognition methods3,4,5,6,7 employ deep learning techniques to capture the radiological features of pulmonary nodules, and these methods can achieve good area under the curve (AUC) performance. However, false positives and false negatives remain a challenge for radiologists and clinicians. The interpretation and expression of features from the perspective of pulmonary nodule classification and examination are still unsatisfactory. At the same time, the 3D reconstruction of pulmonary nodules based on LDCT has gained increasing attention as a digital model for various types of nodules.
The 3D reconstruction of pulmonary nodules is a process that generates a 3D representation of a small growth or lump in the lung. This process typically involves the application of medical image analysis techniques that leverage both medical expertise and data intelligence approaches. The resulting 3D digital model offers a more detailed and accurate depiction of the nodule, enabling the improved visualization and analysis of its size, shape, and spatial relationship with the surrounding lung tissues8,9,10,11,12. Such information can aid in the diagnosis and monitoring of pulmonary nodules, particularly those suspected of being cancerous. By facilitating more precise analysis, the 3D reconstruction of pulmonary nodules has the potential to enhance the accuracy of diagnosis and inform treatment decisions.
Maximum intensity projection (MIP) is a popular technique in the field of 3D reconstruction of pulmonary nodules and is used to create a 2D projection of a 3D image8,9,10,11,12It is particularly useful in the visualization of volumetric data extracted from digital imaging and communications in medicine (DICOM) files scanned by CT. The MIP technique works by selecting the voxels (the smallest units of 3D volume data) with the highest intensity along the viewing direction and projecting them onto a 2D plane. This results in a 2D image that emphasizes the structures with the highest intensity and suppresses those with lower intensity, which makes it easier to identify and analyze relevant features9,10,11,12. However, MIP is not without limitations. For example, the projection process can result in a loss of information, and the resulting 2D image may not accurately represent the 3D structure of the underlying object. Nevertheless, MIP remains a valuable tool for medical imaging and visualization, and its use continues to evolve with advances in technology and computing power11.
In this study, a successive MIP model to visualize pulmonary nodules is developed that is easy to use, user-friendly for radiologists, physicians, and patients, and allows the identification and estimation of the properties of pulmonary nodules. The primary advantages of this processing approach include the following aspects: (1) eliminating false positives and false negatives arising from pattern recognition, which enables a focus on assisting physicians to obtain more comprehensive information on the location, shape, and 3D size of pulmonary nodules, as well as their relationship to the surrounding vasculature; (2) enabling specialist physicians to attain professional knowledge of the characteristics of pulmonary nodules even without the assistance of radiologists; and (3) enhancing both communication efficiency between physicians and patients and prognosis evaluation.

<table border="1" fo:keep-together.within-page="1" fo:keep-with-next.within-page="always">
	<tbody>
		<tr>
			<td>MATLAB</td>
			<td>MathWorks&#160;</td>
			<td>2022B</td>
			<td>Computing and visualization&#160;</td>
		</tr>
		<tr>
			<td>Tools for Modeling</td>
			<td>&#160;Intelligent 
			&#160;Entropy</td>
			<td>PulmonaryNodule V1.0</td>
			<td>Beijing Intelligent Entropy Science &#38; Technology Co Ltd. 
			Modeling for CT/MRI fusion</td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

a 3d digital model for the diagnosis and treatment of pulmonary nodules

The three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of pulmonary nodules using medical images has introduced new technical approaches for diagnosing and treating pulmonary nodules, and these approaches are progressively being acknowledged and adopted by physicians and patients. Nonetheless, constructing a relatively universal 3D digital model of pulmonary nodules for diagnosis and treatment is challenging due to device differences, shooting times, and nodule types. The objective of this study is to propose a new 3D digital model of pulmonary nodules that serves as a bridge between physicians and patients and is also a cutting-edge tool for pre-diagnosis and prognostic evaluation. Many AI-driven pulmonary nodule detection and recognition methods employ deep learning techniques to capture the radiological features of pulmonary nodules, and these methods can achieve a good area under-the-curve (AUC) performance. However, false positives and false negatives remain a challenge for radiologists and clinicians. The interpretation and expression of features from the perspective of pulmonary nodule classification and examination are still unsatisfactory. In this study, a method of continuous 3D reconstruction of the whole lung in horizontal and coronal positions is proposed by combining existing medical image processing technologies. Compared with other applicable methods, this method allows users to rapidly locate pulmonary nodules and identify their fundamental properties while also observing pulmonary nodules from multiple perspectives, thereby providing a more effective clinical tool for diagnosing and treating pulmonary nodules.

A 3D Digital Model for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Pulmonary Nodules

To make the method applicable to a wider range of devices, the stacking order of each scan needs to be reorganized based on the internal coordinates of the DICOM file system (Figure 1) to generate the correct 3D volume (Figure 2). Based on the accurate volume data, we utilized algorithmic continuous reconstruction of the patient&#39;s lung horizontal and coronal MIPs (Figure 4 and Figure 5) for the prec...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about A 3D Digital Model for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Pulmonary Nodules at JoVE.com

A 3D Digital Model for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Pulmonary Nodules (Video) | JoVE 

The objective of this study is to develop a novel 3D digital model of pulmonary nodules that serves as a communication bridge between physicians and patients and is also a cutting-edge tool for pre-diagnosis and prognostic evaluation.

The three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction of pulmonary nodules using medical images has introduced new technical approaches for diagnosing and treating ...