Towards a Reduction in Error in the Radiological Measurement of Growth in Long Leg Bones of Children

The problem of measurement error in radiological estimates of the bone length and differential growth of children's legs is discussed. The contribution of subjective measurement from film by radiologists to the overall error is estimated and confirmed by inter-observer experiments. The problem of radioluscency of unossified cartilage in infants is overcome using a non-routine radiographic technique followed by computer processing to enhance the contrast between the condylar region and the surrounding tissues. The possibility of automatically tracing the contour of the enhanced condylar edge is studied and experimental results are presented.