Fractal Compression of Medical Images

Abstract: Medical images, like any other digital data, require compression in order to reduce disk space needed for storage and time needed for transmission. The lossless compression methods of still images can shorten the file only to a very limited degree. The application of fractal compression to medical images would allow obtaining much higher compression ratios. While the fractal magnification – an inseparable feature of the fractal compression – would be very useful in presenting the reconstructed image in a highly readable form. However, like all irreversible methods, the fractal compression is connected with the problem of information loss, which is especially troublesome in the medical imaging. A very time consuming encoding process, which can last even several hours, is another bothersome drawback of the fractal compression. Based on a survey of literature and own cogitations, the author attempts to provide an adapted to the needs of medical imaging solution that will overcome the unfavorable ailments of the fractal compression methods. The thesis does not provide only theoretical deliberations but also gives implementation of the proposed algorithm, which is used to test the suitability of the fractal compression to medical imaging. The results of the work are more than satisfying – the fidelity of the images compressed with the proposed fractal compression method meets the requirements imposed on the medical images and the fractal magnification outperforms other magnification techniques.