Vessel Visualization with Volume Rendering

Volume rendering allows the direct visualization of scanned volume data, and can reveal vessel abnormalities more faithfully. In this overview, we will present a pipeline model for direct volume rendering systems, which focus on vascular structures. We will cover the fields of data pre-processing, classification of the volume via transfer functions, and finally rendering the volume in 2D and 3D. For each stage in the pipeline, different techniques are discussed to support the diagnosis of vascular diseases. Next to various general methods we will present two case studies, in which the systems are optimized for two different medical issues. At the end, we discuss current trends in volume rendering and their implications for vessel visualization.