Unmet Need:
The human cerebroarterial system is composed of a complex system of arteries that supply the brain cells with oxygen and nutrition. Cerebroarterial networks are difficult to analyze due to their composition of small and large arteries, which have a complex organization of branches and cyclic connections that varies among individuals. Analyzing cerebroarterial structures could aid diagnosis and research of multiple cerebrovascular diseases, such as stenoses, aneurysms, arteriovenous malformations, or ischemic strokes, all of which are related to alterations of the arterial system. Changes in the cerebrovascular system could also prove valuable as early biomarkers for neurological diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease. However, detecting structural arterial abnormalities requires detailed knowledge of the normal morphology and distribution of the cerebral arteries in the brain. Conventional, two-dimensional, manually-drawn atlases suffer from a lack of flexibility; if the set of template slices provided in the atlas do not match the slice thickness or orientation of acquired clinical neuroimages, the atlas utility is diminished. Even with well-aligned two-dimensional slices lack precision and do not allow for quantitative assessment of vascular territories in a single patient.
Technology Overview:
Johns Hopkins researchers have developed a human brain atlas based on lesion distributions in 1,298 acute stroke patients. The atlas provides straightforward and robustly-defined watershed border zones and contains hierarchical segmentation levels created by a fusion of vascular and classical anatomical criteria.
Stage of Development:
The technology is available for use.
