An Introduction to Visualization of Diffusion Tensor Imaging and its Applications

Water diffusion is anisotropic in organized tissues such as white matter and muscle. Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), a non-invasive MR technique, measures water self-diffusion rates and thus gives an indication of the underlying microstructure of tissue. The diffusion rate is often expressed by a second-order tensor. Visualizing DTI in an insightful way is challenging because of the high dimensionality of the diffusion tensor and the complex spatial relationships in a diffusion tensor field. This chapter surveys the different visualization techniques that have been developed for DTI and compares their main characteristics and drawbacks. We also discuss some of the many biomedical applications in which DTI helps extend our understanding or improve clinical procedures. We conclude with an overview of open problems and research directions.