# Spinal Cord Segmentation in Ultrasound Medical Imagery
## 2 Related Works  
The analysis of ultrasound medical images of the spine was the subject of many studies in recent years. Ultrasound is a safe, radiation-free imaging modality that is easy to use by neurosurgeons compared to other medical imaging modalities. [PERSON] et al. [5] introduced a real-time method to automatically delineate the transverse processes parts of the vertebrae using ultrasound medical imagery. The method creates from the shadows cast by each transverse process a three-dimensional volume of the surface of the spine. [PERSON] et al. [6] used the results of this study to build a step-wise method for identification of the visible landmarks in ultrasound to visualize a 3D model of the spine. [PERSON] et al. [7] developed a method to make a navigated three-dimensional intraoperative ultrasound  
Figure 4: Ultrasound image of the spinal cord.  
for spine surgery. They registered the patient automatically by using an intraoperative computed tomography before mapping it to a preoperative image data to get visualized navigation of the common parts of the spine. [PERSON] et al. [15] developed a deep learning model named SLIDE to discriminate many parts of the spinal column using only 2d ultrasound with 88% cross-validation accuracy. The model acts in real-time (40 frames per second). [PERSON] et al. [16] developed a method for estimation of spine mineral density from ultrasound images. This method is useful for the diagnosis of osteoporosis. [PERSON] et al. [1] developed an automated measurement of the spine curvature from 3D Ultrasound Imaging. The method is useful for the diagnosis of scoliosis. [PERSON] et al. [17] developed a method to visualize transabdominal lumbar spine image using portable ultrasound. They specified a settings of machine configurations and probe selection to follow in order to obtain a profitable image. [PERSON] et al. [18] made a review of applications of the ultrasound imaging for the analysis of neonatal spine with emphasis on cases where it is the primary imaging modality to use. [PERSON] et al. [19] made a similar study on the examination of the neonatal and infant spine from the ultrasound. [PERSON] et al. [20] also made a review about applications of tracked ultrasound modality in navigation during spine Interventions. [PERSON] et al. [21] made a pairwise registration of 2D ultrasound (US) and 3D computed tomography of the spine. The model is done using Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) before the refinement of the registration using an orientation code mutual information metric. [PERSON] et al. [22] developed a method for automatic segmentation of the spine bones surface in ultrasound images. The method can be extended to any bone surface presented in ultrasound images. [PERSON] et al. [23] made a review about the use of ultrasound imagery for guidance in the diagnosis of many spinal pains.  
From the above, we observed that a great number of studies had treated the use of ultrasound imagery in the diagnosis of clinical symptoms associated with the spine. Nevertheless, they are limited to the identification and segmentation of the bones of the spine. Up to our knowledge, no one treated the identification and segmentation of the spinal cord from ultrasound imaging. During laminectomy surgery, ultrasound images of the spinal cord could be visualized and analyzed. Surgeons usually refer to these images to study the effect of the laminectomy surgery and the spinal cord pulsation to confirm the adequacy of spinal cord decompression. Hence, we targeted this problem in this study and aim to provide an automatic solution for the segmentation of spinal cord using the recent advances in deep learning algorithms.