Image processing and image analysis is a core area of application in computer science. Several
research work has contributed and consolidated this domain of research. With the progression
and advancement of digital imaging, contribution towards meaningful assessment of images
have gained importance. An image captured by some imaging modalities needs to be
understood and deciphered to gain insight on the image/s and hence extract pertinent
information from the captured image/s.
Microscopic examination of cellular and histological samples are widely used as a basis for
disease detection. However, with the introduction of advanced digital microscope and high
resolution scanners the approach towards pathology had a paradigm shift towards 'virtual
microscopy' as an innovation in diagnostic workflow. Handling of glass slides across the labs
is cumbersome and susceptible to loss of the slide or decreased quality of the specimen. The
associated turnaround time (from the sample collection to report generation) is time consuming.
With the increase in reliability of digital equipment like digital imaging technologies, computer
hardware and software, there has been persistent acceptance of Digital Pathology in the medical
community.
Malaria is the oldest and cumulatively the deadliest of the human infectious diseases and is a
primary cause of child mortality. The disease is predominantly widespread in tropical climatic
regions that are backward and under-developed. Female Anopheles mosquito is the sole vector
for the protozoan infectious disease that affects human population. The disease attains
epidemic proportions in remote rural areas within a very short time. Prevention of the disease
by curtailing the breeding grounds of the vector has proved futile in most areas of the world.
The disease can only be managed with early detection, confirmation of species type, stage and
density of parasite within the human blood.
