A modeling approach for burn scar assessment using natural features and elastic property.

Abstract

A modeling approach is presented for quantitative burn scar assessment. Emphases are given to: 1) constructing a finite-element model from natural image features with an adaptive mesh and 2) quantifying the Young's modulus of scars using the finite-element model and regularization method. A set of natural point features is extracted from the images of burn patients. A Delaunay triangle mesh is then generated that adapts to the point features. A three-dimensional finite-element model is built on top of the mesh with the aid of range images providing the depth information. The Young's modulus of scars is quantified with a simplified regularization functional, assuming that the knowledge of the scar's geometry is available. The consistency between the relative elasticity index and the physician's rating based on the Vancouver scale (a relative scale used to rate burn scars) indicates that the proposed modeling approach has high potential for image-based quantitative burn scar assessment.