The processing of laryngoscopic images as a diagnostic aid

Endoscopy is widely used in the medical field for the visual examination of various parts of the body. Particular use of these instruments is made in Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) departments for the examination of the larynx-the box like volume within the throat that is used to form the sounds used in speech. There have long been links between the ENT department of the Freeman Hospital, Newcastle upon Tyne and the Department of Speech of that same city´s university for the support of patients whose vocal communication facility has been affected by disease in, or damage to, the larynx. Via this link with the University, the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering became involved with this work with a view to applying skills in image processing (developed in other fields) to the analysis and enhancement of the images presented via an endoscope. This paper describes the system under development and discusses some of the techniques employed