Evaluation of Morphology Descriptors in Ct Images of the Aorta as Indicators of the Presence of Plaque

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS In completing this graduate thesis, I am grateful for the support and encouragement that many people have provided to me. I would like to thank Dr. James Wolfer for teaching, advising, and encouraging me throughout this journey. I would also like to thank my thesis committee members, Dr. Dana Vrajitoru and Dr. Morteza Shafii-Mousavi for their careful reading and suggestions for improvement. Special thanks are extended to Dr. Jeffery Soble from Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, Illinois for serving on my thesis committee. I am grateful for all of the time that he spent helping to define this project, providing the CT datasets, and reviewing the thesis document. Dr. Soble and his colleagues, Dr. Ameet Parikh and Dr. David Chawla, also served as our domain experts in classifying the images. This project could not have been completed without their medical expertise. Thank you to Dr. Robert Batzinger, Informatics Lab Supervisor, for arranging lab access and for his help in installing required software to complete the project. The Computer Science Department at IU South Bend has a unique group of faculty and staff members who have been exceptionally positive and willing to help me succeed in this graduate program. I have enjoyed meeting, working with, and learning from them. Last, I extend my love and special thanks to my husband and children who believed that I could do this.