Toward quantifying geometric microstructural differences between primary and secondary osteons via segmentation

Abstract

Osteo-histological studies reveal that bones remodel themselves by removing mature bone tissue (bone resorption) from the skeleton and by forming new bone tissue (ossification). In cortical bone, remodeling results in secondary systems replacing of bone that has existed previously (primary bone). In histology slides, secondary bone appears as osteons with central Haversian canals while primary bone appears as interstitial lamellae occupying spaces between osteons. Cement lines refer to the boundaries demarcating the osteons. Although primary and secondary osteons differ micro-structurally, disambiguating such differences in histological studies presents a challenge. This paper aims to quantify such differences using automated segmentation utilizing artificial intelligence and geometric attributes: e.g., area (size), and compactness (shape). Preliminary findings suggest that vascular channels within primary osteons tend to be far more numerous but of smaller sizes than in secondary osteons.