Measurement Of Bone Structure By Use Of Fractal Dimension

Abstract

This paper describes a method to characterize the evolution of bone structural changes by image processing. This is done by assuming a fractal texture model for the images. A directionally oriented implementation of a maximum likelihood estimator of H (related to the Hausdorff Besicovitch dimension) is performed to obtain an evaluation of this parameter for several directions on each image. Two sets of Xray images are ased : images of an excised, bisected femoral head after different times in an acid solution, and images of a human calcaneus (heel) after an injury and immobilization. The results show that the value of H follows the visual evolution of bone structure and that H decreases with the dissolution of calcium.