Patent ID: 7400755

Claim:
A method, comprising: receiving a functional image including a first region of a pathological anatomy comprising first pixels and a second region of the pathological anatomy comprising second pixels, each of the first and second pixels having a corresponding intensity data value; and automatically distinguishing between the first region and the second region based on a difference between the intensity data values of the first and second pixels, wherein automatically distinguishing comprises: comparing the intensity data values of the second pixels against the threshold intensity value; determining that the intensity data values of the second pixels are less than the threshold intensity value; calculating a total pixel count and a total intensity, from the first and second pixels, for the pathological anatomy from a slice of the functional image; setting a mean target intensity based on the total intensity divided by the total pixel count; and flagging a pixel as being part of a high intensity area if the corresponding intensity value is greater than the mean target intensity.