MIPAV (Medical Image Processing, Analysis and Visualization)

The MIPAV (Medical Image Processing, Analysis, and Visualization) application enables quantitative analysis and visualization of medical images of numerous modalities such as PET, MRI, CT, or microscopy. Using MIPAV’s standard user-interface and analysis tools, researchers at remote sites (via the internet) can easily share research data and analyses, thereby enhancing their ability to research, diagnose, monitor, and treat medical disorders. MIPAV is a Java application and can be run on any Java-enabled platform such as Windows, UNIX, or Macintosh OS X. MIPAV is to meet the following goals:

To develop computational methods and algorithms to analyze and quantify biomedical data;
To collaborate with NIH researchers and colleagues at other research centers in applying information analysis and visualization to biomedical research problems;
To develop tools (in both hardware and software) that offer the ability to analyze biomedical data to support the discovery and advancement of biomedical knowledge.

Imaging has become an essential component in many fields of bio-medical research and clinical practice. Biologists study cells and generate 3D confocal microscopy data sets, virologists generate 3D reconstructions of viruses from micrographs, radiologists identify and quantify tumors from MRI and CT scans, and neuroscientists detect regional metabolic brain activity from PET and functional MRI scans. Analysis of these diverse types of images requires sophisticated computerized quantification and visualization tools. To support scientific research in the NIH intramural program, CIT has made major progress in the development of a platform-independent, n-dimensional, general-purpose, extensible image processing and visualization program.