Getaneh Bayu Tefera1, Yuxiang Zhou1, Ponnada A. Narayana1
1Diagnostic & Interventional Imaging, University of Texas at Houston, Houston, TX, United States
Abstract: A method to obtain the principal diffusion directions from the orientation density function (ODF) determined using the fourth order tensor, where the local maximum method fails, is developed. This method is applied to analyze the human brain diffusion data using high angular resolution diffusion imaging (HARDI) data. Application of the proposed method to HARDI datasets, a clear crossing pattern of superior longitudinal fasciculus (SLF) and cerebral spinal tract (CST) that was not seen with the local maximum method was demonstrated.