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Clinical experience with a computer program for reconstructing and visualizing three-dimensional (3-D) structures is reported. Applications to the study of soft-tissue and skeletal structures, such as the temporomandibular joint and craniofacial anatomy, using computed tomography (CT) data are described. Several features specific to the computer algorithm are demonstrated and evaluated. These include: (1) manipulation of density windows to selectively visualize bone or soft tissue structures; (2) the efficacy of gradient shading algorithms in revealing fine surface detail; and (3) the rapid generation of cut-away views revealing details of internal structures. Also demonstrated is the importance of high resolution data as input to the 3-D program. The implementation of the program (VoxelView-32) described here, is on a MASSCOMP computer running UNIX. Data were collected with General Electric or Siemens CT scanners and transferred to the MASSCOMP for off-line 3-D recon-struction, via magnetic tape or Ethernet. An interactive graphics facility on the MASSCOMP allows viewing of 2-D slices, subregioning, and selection of lower and upper density thresholds for segmentation. The software then enters a pre-processing phase during which a volume representation of the segmented object (soft tissue or bone) is automatically created. This is followed by a rendering phase during which multiple views of the segmented object are automatically generated. The pre-processing phase typically takes 4 to 8 minutes (although very large datasets may require as much as 30 minutes) and the rendering phase typically takes 1 to 2 minutes for each 3-D view. Volume representation and rendering techniques are used at all stages of the processing, and gradient shading is used for enhanced surface detail.
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