Objective determination of anatomical landmarks on the body surface: measurement of the vertebra prominens from surface curvature.

A method for the objective detection of anatomical landmarks on the body surface is presented. The method is based on an analysis of local surface shape which is described in terms of surface curvature. The curvature is calculated from the surface coordinates as measured by optical methods such as moiré topography or rasterstereography. As an example, the location of the vertebra prominens is determined. In order to assess the accuracy and reliability of the procedure, the results are compared with the conventional method of palpation and marking. The measured deviations are in the order of a few millimeters.