@article{KoflerWaldKolbitschetal., author = {Kofler, Andreas and Wald, Christian and Kolbitsch, Christoph and von Tycowicz, Christoph and Ambellan, Felix}, title = {Joint Reconstruction and Segmentation in Undersampled 3D Knee MRI combining Shape Knowledge and Deep Learning}, series = {Physics in Medicine and Biology}, journal = {Physics in Medicine and Biology}, doi = {10.1088/1361-6560/ad3797}, abstract = {Task-adapted image reconstruction methods using end-to-end trainable neural networks (NNs) have been proposed to optimize reconstruction for subsequent processing tasks, such as segmentation. However, their training typically requires considerable hardware resources and thus, only relatively simple building blocks, e.g. U-Nets, are typically used, which, albeit powerful, do not integrate model-specific knowledge. In this work, we extend an end-to-end trainable task-adapted image reconstruction method for a clinically realistic reconstruction and segmentation problem of bone and cartilage in 3D knee MRI by incorporating statistical shape models (SSMs). The SSMs model the prior information and help to regularize the segmentation maps as a final post-processing step. We compare the proposed method to a state-of-the-art (SOTA) simultaneous multitask learning approach for image reconstruction and segmentation (MTL) and to a complex SSMs-informed segmentation pipeline (SIS). Our experiments show that the combination of joint end-to-end training and SSMs to further regularize the segmentation maps obtained by MTL highly improves the results, especially in terms of mean and maximal surface errors. In particular, we achieve the segmentation quality of SIS and, at the same time, a substantial model reduction that yields a five-fold decimation in model parameters and a computational speedup of an order of magnitude. Remarkably, even for undersampling factors of up to R=8, the obtained segmentation maps are of comparable quality to those obtained by SIS from ground-truth images.}, language = {en} } @article{NavayazdaniAmbellanHaniketal., author = {Navayazdani, Esfandiar and Ambellan, Felix and Hanik, Martin and von Tycowicz, Christoph}, title = {Sasaki Metric for Spline Models of Manifold-Valued Trajectories}, series = {Computer Aided Geometric Design}, volume = {104}, journal = {Computer Aided Geometric Design}, doi = {10.1016/j.cagd.2023.102220}, pages = {102220}, abstract = {We propose a generic spatiotemporal framework to analyze manifold-valued measurements, which allows for employing an intrinsic and computationally efficient Riemannian hierarchical model. Particularly, utilizing regression, we represent discrete trajectories in a Riemannian manifold by composite B{\´e}zier splines, propose a natural metric induced by the Sasaki metric to compare the trajectories, and estimate average trajectories as group-wise trends. We evaluate our framework in comparison to state-of-the-art methods within qualitative and quantitative experiments on hurricane tracks. Notably, our results demonstrate the superiority of spline-based approaches for an intensity classification of the tracks.}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{MyersUtpalaTalbaretal., author = {Myers, Adele and Utpala, Saiteja and Talbar, Shubham and Sanborn, Sophia and Shewmake, Christian and Donnat, Claire and Mathe, Johan and Lupo, Umberto and Sonthalia, Rishi and Cui, Xinyue and Szwagier, Tom and Pignet, Arthur and Bergsson, Andri and Hauberg, S{\o}ren and Nielsen, Dmitriy and Sommer, Stefan and Klindt, David and Hermansen, Erik and Vaupel, Melvin and Dunn, Benjamin and Xiong, Jeffrey and Aharony, Noga and Pe'er, Itsik and Ambellan, Felix and Hanik, Martin and Navayazdani, Esfandiar and Tycowicz, Christoph von and Miolane, Nina}, title = {ICLR 2022 Challenge for Computational Geomerty \& Topology: Design and Results}, series = {Proceedings of Topology, Algebra, and Geometry in Learning}, volume = {196}, booktitle = {Proceedings of Topology, Algebra, and Geometry in Learning}, publisher = {PMLR}, pages = {269 -- 276}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{LuedkeAmiranashviliAmbellanetal., author = {L{\"u}dke, David and Amiranashvili, Tamaz and Ambellan, Felix and Ezhov, Ivan and Menze, Bjoern and Zachow, Stefan}, title = {Landmark-free Statistical Shape Modeling via Neural Flow Deformations}, series = {Medical Image Computing and Computer Assisted Intervention - MICCAI 2022}, volume = {13432}, booktitle = {Medical Image Computing and Computer Assisted Intervention - MICCAI 2022}, publisher = {Springer, Cham}, doi = {10.1007/978-3-031-16434-7_44}, abstract = {Statistical shape modeling aims at capturing shape variations of an anatomical structure that occur within a given population. Shape models are employed in many tasks, such as shape reconstruction and image segmentation, but also shape generation and classification. Existing shape priors either require dense correspondence between training examples or lack robustness and topological guarantees. We present FlowSSM, a novel shape modeling approach that learns shape variability without requiring dense correspondence between training instances. It relies on a hierarchy of continuous deformation flows, which are parametrized by a neural network. Our model outperforms state-of-the-art methods in providing an expressive and robust shape prior for distal femur and liver. We show that the emerging latent representation is discriminative by separating healthy from pathological shapes. Ultimately, we demonstrate its effectiveness on two shape reconstruction tasks from partial data. Our source code is publicly available (https://github.com/davecasp/flowssm).}, language = {en} } @phdthesis{Ambellan, author = {Ambellan, Felix}, title = {Efficient Riemannian Statistical Shape Analysis with Applications in Disease Assessment}, doi = {10.17169/refubium-36729}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:188-refubium-37016-3}, abstract = {In this work, we address the challenge of developing statistical shape models that account for the non-Euclidean nature inherent to (anatomical) shape variation and at the same time offer fast, numerically robust processing and as much invariance as possible regarding translation and rotation, i.e. Euclidean motion. With the aim of doing that we formulate a continuous and physically motivated notion of shape space based on deformation gradients. We follow two different tracks endowing this differential representation with a Riemannian structure to establish a statistical shape model. (1) We derive a model based on differential coordinates as elements in GL(3)+. To this end, we adapt the notion of bi-invariant means employing an affine connection structure on GL(3)+. Furthermore, we perform second-order statistics based on a family of Riemannian metrics providing the most possible invariance, viz. GL(3)+-left-invariance and O(3)-right-invariance. (2) We endow the differential coordinates with a non-Euclidean structure, that stems from a product Lie group of stretches and rotations. This structure admits a bi-invariant metric and thus allows for a consistent analysis via manifold-valued Riemannian statistics. This work further presents a novel shape representation based on discrete fundamental forms that is naturally invariant under Euclidean motion, namely the fundamental coordinates. We endow this representation with a Lie group structure that admits bi-invariant metrics and therefore allows for consistent analysis using manifold-valued statistics based on the Riemannian framework. Furthermore, we derive a simple, efficient, robust, yet accurate (i.e. without resorting to model approximations) solver for the inverse problem that allows for interactive applications. Beyond statistical shape modeling the proposed framework is amenable for surface processing such as quasi-isometric flattening. Additionally, the last part of the thesis aims on shape-based, continuous disease stratification to provide means that objectify disease assessment over the current clinical practice of ordinal grading systems. Therefore, we derive the geodesic B-score, a generalization of the of the Euclidean B-score, in order to assess knee osteoarthritis. In this context we present a Newton-type fixed point iteration for projection onto geodesics in shape space. On the application side, we show that the derived geodesic B-score features, in comparison to its Euclidean counterpart, an improved predictive performance on assessing the risk of total knee replacement surgery.}, language = {en} } @article{GlatzederKomnikAmbellanetal., author = {Glatzeder, Korbinian and Komnik, Igor and Ambellan, Felix and Zachow, Stefan and Potthast, Wolfgang}, title = {Dynamic pressure analysis of novel interpositional knee spacer implants in 3D-printed human knee models}, series = {Scientific Reports}, volume = {12}, journal = {Scientific Reports}, doi = {10.1038/s41598-022-20463-6}, abstract = {Alternative treatment methods for knee osteoarthritis (OA) are in demand, to delay the young (< 50 Years) patient's need for osteotomy or knee replacement. Novel interpositional knee spacers shape based on statistical shape model (SSM) approach and made of polyurethane (PU) were developed to present a minimally invasive method to treat medial OA in the knee. The implant should be supposed to reduce peak strains and pain, restore the stability of the knee, correct the malalignment of a varus knee and improve joint function and gait. Firstly, the spacers were tested in artificial knee models. It is assumed that by application of a spacer, a significant reduction in stress values and a significant increase in the contact area in the medial compartment of the knee will be registered. Biomechanical analysis of the effect of novel interpositional knee spacer implants on pressure distribution in 3D-printed knee model replicas: the primary purpose was the medial joint contact stress-related biomechanics. A secondary purpose was a better understanding of medial/lateral redistribution of joint loading. Six 3D printed knee models were reproduced from cadaveric leg computed tomography. Each of four spacer implants was tested in each knee geometry under realistic arthrokinematic dynamic loading conditions, to examine the pressure distribution in the knee joint. All spacers showed reduced mean stress values by 84-88\% and peak stress values by 524-704\% in the medial knee joint compartment compared to the non-spacer test condition. The contact area was enlarged by 462-627\% as a result of the inserted spacers. Concerning the appreciable contact stress reduction and enlargement of the contact area in the medial knee joint compartment, the premises are in place for testing the implants directly on human knee cadavers to gain further insights into a possible tool for treating medial knee osteoarthritis.}, language = {en} } @article{CaputoEmporioGiachettietal., author = {Caputo, Ariel and Emporio, Marco and Giachetti, Andrea and Cristani, Marco and Borghi, Guido and D'Eusanio, Andrea and Le, Minh-Quan and Nguyen, Hai-Dang and Tran, Minh-Triet and Ambellan, Felix and Hanik, Martin and Navayazdani, Esfandiar and Tycowicz, Christoph von}, title = {SHREC 2022 Track on Online Detection of Heterogeneous Gestures}, series = {Computers and Graphics}, volume = {107}, journal = {Computers and Graphics}, doi = {10.1016/j.cag.2022.07.015}, pages = {241 -- 251}, abstract = {This paper presents the outcomes of a contest organized to evaluate methods for the online recognition of heterogeneous gestures from sequences of 3D hand poses. The task is the detection of gestures belonging to a dictionary of 16 classes characterized by different pose and motion features. The dataset features continuous sequences of hand tracking data where the gestures are interleaved with non-significant motions. The data have been captured using the Hololens 2 finger tracking system in a realistic use-case of mixed reality interaction. The evaluation is based not only on the detection performances but also on the latency and the false positives, making it possible to understand the feasibility of practical interaction tools based on the algorithms proposed. The outcomes of the contest's evaluation demonstrate the necessity of further research to reduce recognition errors, while the computational cost of the algorithms proposed is sufficiently low.}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{MayerBaumAmbellanetal., author = {Mayer, Julius and Baum, Daniel and Ambellan, Felix and von Tycowicz, Christoph}, title = {A Soft-Correspondence Approach to Shape-based Disease Grading with Graph Convolutional Networks}, series = {Proceedings of Machine Learning Research}, volume = {194}, booktitle = {Proceedings of Machine Learning Research}, pages = {85 -- 95}, abstract = {Shape analysis provides principled means for understanding anatomical structures from medical images. The underlying notions of shape spaces, however, come with strict assumptions prohibiting the analysis of incomplete and/or topologically varying shapes. This work aims to alleviate these limitations by adapting the concept of soft correspondences. In particular, we present a graph-based learning approach for morphometric classification of disease states that is based on a generalized notion of shape correspondences in terms of functional maps. We demonstrate the performance of the derived classifier on the open-access ADNI database for differentiating normal controls and subjects with Alzheimer's disease. Notably, our experiment shows that our approach can improve over state-of-the-art from geometric deep learning.}, language = {en} } @article{AmbellanZachowvonTycowicz, author = {Ambellan, Felix and Zachow, Stefan and von Tycowicz, Christoph}, title = {Rigid Motion Invariant Statistical Shape Modeling based on Discrete Fundamental Forms}, series = {Medical Image Analysis}, volume = {73}, journal = {Medical Image Analysis}, doi = {10.1016/j.media.2021.102178}, abstract = {We present a novel approach for nonlinear statistical shape modeling that is invariant under Euclidean motion and thus alignment-free. By analyzing metric distortion and curvature of shapes as elements of Lie groups in a consistent Riemannian setting, we construct a framework that reliably handles large deformations. Due to the explicit character of Lie group operations, our non-Euclidean method is very efficient allowing for fast and numerically robust processing. This facilitates Riemannian analysis of large shape populations accessible through longitudinal and multi-site imaging studies providing increased statistical power. Additionally, as planar configurations form a submanifold in shape space, our representation allows for effective estimation of quasi-isometric surfaces flattenings. We evaluate the performance of our model w.r.t. shape-based classification of hippocampus and femur malformations due to Alzheimer's disease and osteoarthritis, respectively. In particular, we achieve state-of-the-art accuracies outperforming the standard Euclidean as well as a recent nonlinear approach especially in presence of sparse training data. To provide insight into the model's ability of capturing biological shape variability, we carry out an analysis of specificity and generalization ability.}, language = {en} } @inproceedings{AmbellanZachowvonTycowicz, author = {Ambellan, Felix and Zachow, Stefan and von Tycowicz, Christoph}, title = {Geodesic B-Score for Improved Assessment of Knee Osteoarthritis}, series = {Proc. Information Processing in Medical Imaging (IPMI)}, booktitle = {Proc. Information Processing in Medical Imaging (IPMI)}, doi = {10.1007/978-3-030-78191-0_14}, pages = {177 -- 188}, abstract = {Three-dimensional medical imaging enables detailed understanding of osteoarthritis structural status. However, there remains a vast need for automatic, thus, reader-independent measures that provide reliable assessment of subject-specific clinical outcomes. To this end, we derive a consistent generalization of the recently proposed B-score to Riemannian shape spaces. We further present an algorithmic treatment yielding simple, yet efficient computations allowing for analysis of large shape populations with several thousand samples. Our intrinsic formulation exhibits improved discrimination ability over its Euclidean counterpart, which we demonstrate for predictive validity on assessing risks of total knee replacement. This result highlights the potential of the geodesic B-score to enable improved personalized assessment and stratification for interventions.}, language = {en} }