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Chapter 1
DOI: 10.4018/978-1-5225-6243-6.ch001
ABSTRACT
Dental radiographs sufer frequently from issues such as low contrast and non-uniform illumination.
The frst step, indeed a signifcant step, is to enhance these digital images to prepare them for successful
post-processing. This pre-processing stage assists to increase the contrast between the foreground that is
the teeth and bone from the background regions. In this chapter, image enhancement methods based on
spatial, frequency, and spatial-frequency are implemented. The dental radiographs used are available
in the public database. The performance of the enhancement methods is validated using qualitative and
quantitative measures. It is observed from the results that the enhancement method aids in improving
dental features such as crowns, fllings, and bridges. This enables human identifcation and diagnostic
purpose in the way it is possible to identify a variety of diseases. It also prevents the need for a remake,
saving the patient from an additional treatment.
INTRODUCTION
Human identification is a crucial and prime issue these days as traditional authentication systems may
confirm tentative identity. Biometrics is one such technology that is used in identification for uniquely
recognizing individuals based on the inherent, physical or behavioural qualities, such as fingerprint, iris,
hand vein and voice. Dental biometrics has leading edge when compared to other modalities, which has
more complex features and might lead to high error rate (Vijayakumari, Ulaganathan, & Banumathi,
2011; Lin, Lai, & Huang, 2010; Lin, Lai, & Huang, 2012; Rehman, Akram, Faraz, & Riaz, 2015).
Digital Image Enhancement
Techniques for Dental
Radiographs:
A Support to Clinicians
E. Priya
Sri Sairam Engineering College, India