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A computer‐assisted stereological quantification program: Openstereo
Author(s) -
Abrams DonCarlos,
Facer Paul,
Bishop Anne E.,
Polak Julia M.
Publication year - 1994
Publication title -
microscopy research and technique
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.536
H-Index - 118
eISSN - 1097-0029
pISSN - 1059-910X
DOI - 10.1002/jemt.1070290310
Subject(s) - computer science , stereology , thresholding , computer graphics (images) , artificial intelligence , computer vision , pathology , medicine , image (mathematics)
At present, the stereological assessment of histological sections is made possible by the use of manual counting techniques which estimate measurement parameters. These methods are tedious, time‐consuming, and subject to operator error. This paper describes a UNIX‐based computer program, OpenStereo, which was developed to facilitate the quantitative investigation of innervation and vascularity from histological sections. We designed OpenStereo to reduce operator error and increase the efficiency of stereological point counting for volume estimation and intercept counting for surface area analysis. The program was written in the C language for the Sun TM Workstation and uses the XView graphics user interface. Digital images, obtained by a variety of modalities, may be processed using stereological point counting, interceptions, planimetry, or thresholding techniques. The program displays selected images in a random fashion for analysis or processing and records the number of manually selected points or interceptions. Delineation of the reference space provides the computer with the data necessary to calculate volume or surface densities. The efficiency of OpenStereo was demonstrated by performing a pilot study on the quantification of innervation in the normal human colon and ileum. This stereological package benefits from the features of the X‐windowing environment and has proved to be suitable for what has hitherto been a tedious and time‐consuming task. © 1994 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.