Super-Resolution Technology for X-Ray Images and Its Application for Rheumatoid Arthritis Medical Examinations

Super-resolution techniques have been widely used in fields such as television, aerospace imaging, and medical imaging. In medical imaging, X-rays commonly have low resolution and a significant amount of noise, because radiation levels are minimized to maintain patient safety. In this paper, we propose a novel super-resolution method for X-ray images, and a novel measurement algorithm for treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) using X-ray images generated by our proposed super-resolution method. Moreover, to validate measurement accuracy for our proposed algorithm, we make a model for measurement algorithm about joint space distance using a 3D printer, and X-ray images are obtained to photograph it. Experimental results show that high quality super-resolution images are obtained, and the measurement distances are measured with high accuracy. Therefore, our proposed measurement algorithm is effective for RA medical examinations.