Projeto colono: aplicando computação gráfica em colonoscopia virtual

Abstract

Several advances in the field of medicine have made possible, over the last few centuries, a significant increase in human life expectancy. In particular, the introduction of different types of exams, supported by evidence gathered from studies with patients in real cases, has made it possible to direct more effective medical treatments and even prevent numerous diseases. Colonoscopy is an endoscopic exam that allows both the evaluation of the walls of the lower part of the digestive tract and biopsy extraction. Colonoscopy is performed under sedation and considered quite safe, but it is considered invasive and has a low acceptance rate by the population, especially males. Thus, virtual colonoscopy or computed tomography colonography emerges as a less invasive, safer alternative with assertiveness comparable to the traditional method. This exam is based on visual analysis from data sensed as a CT scan, allowing the intestinal structure to be inspected through 3D navigation. This work is part of the proposal of a computer graphics system to perform virtual colonoscopy. The main objective is to evaluate surface reconstruction techniques used on the image exam data, in the process of implementing a low-cost computational system that supports the navigation and examination of the three-dimensional structure of the colon.