A Wavelet-Based Approach for Estimating Time-Varying Connectivity in Resting-State Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

The selection of an appropriate window size, window function, and functional connectivity (FC) metric in the sliding window method is not straightforward due to the absence of ground truth. A previously proposed wavelet-based method was accordingly adjusted for estimating time-varying FC (TVFC) and was applied to a large high-quality, low-motion dataset of 400 resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging data. Specifically, the wavelet coherence magnitude and relative phase were averaged across wavelet (frequency) scales to yield TVFC and synchronization patterns.

Effects of motion related outliers in dynamic functional connectivity using the sliding window method.

Background: It has been suggested that the use of window functions, other than the rectangular, in the sliding window method, may be beneficial for reducing the effects of motion-related outliers in the time-series, when assessing dynamic functional connectivity (dFC) in resting-state fMRI (rs-fMRI).

Methodology: Ten window functions for a wide range of window lengths (20-150 s) combined with Pearson and Kendall correlation metrics, were investigated. One hundred high quality rs-fMRI datasets from healthy controls, were used to systematically assess the effect of varying the window function and length on dFC assessment.

Assessment of dynamic functional connectivity in resting-state fMRI using the sliding window technique.

Introduction: Recent studies related to assessing functional connectivity (FC) in resting-state functional magnetic resonance imaging have revealed that the resulting connectivity patterns exhibit considerable fluctuations (dynamic FC [dFC]). A widely applied method for quantifying dFC is the sliding window technique. According to this method, the data are divided into segments with the same length (window size) and a correlation metric is employed to assess the connectivity within these segments, whereby the window size is often empirically chosen.

An automatic panoramic image reconstruction scheme from dental computed tomography images.

Objectives: Panoramic images of the jaws are extensively used for dental examinations and/or surgical planning because they provide a general overview of the patient's maxillary and mandibular regions. Panoramic images are two-dimensional projections of three-dimensional (3D) objects. Therefore, it should be possible to reconstruct them from 3D radiographic representations of the jaws, produced by CBCT scanning, obviating the need for additional exposure to X-rays, should there be a need of panoramic views.

Geometry-based vs. intensity-based medical image registration: A comparative study on 3D CT data.

Spatial alignment of Computed Tomography (CT) data sets is often required in numerous medical applications and it is usually achieved by applying conventional exhaustive registration techniques, which are mainly based on the intensity of the subject data sets. Those techniques consider the full range of data points composing the data, thus negatively affecting the required processing time. Alternatively, alignment can be performed using the correspondence of extracted data points from both sets.