Three-Dimensional Reconstruction and Analysis of Human Central Sulcus Based on Visualization Toolkit

Quantitative shape analysis of human central sulcus (CS) is important to understand the structure-function relationship. However, shape analysis of CS is a tedious process, and there is no analysis software that can be used directly for 3D reconstruction and morphological analysis of CS. In this paper, we developed the software with the VTK technology for three-dimensional (3D) reconstruction and shape analysis of CS. The functions of this software included: constructing and displaying the 3D model of CS with VTK unstructured grid mesh; achieving detailed morphological information by interaction operation of cutting and picking; analyzing global and local morphological characteristics such as surface area, average curvature, degree of concave and so on; visualizing the calculated results using pseudocolor. With the developed software, 12 cases of CS were reconstructed, and the global and local features that describe CS were analyzed. The software developed in this paper will provide researchers more accurate information on morphology of CS, and will help them describe the structure-function relationships of CS more precisely and effectively.