Positron Emission Tomography with Sparse Block Rings and Continuous Bed Motion

Nicolas A. Karakatsanis, Sara A. Zein, Sadek A. Nehmeh

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

6 Scopus citations

Abstract

Clinical PET systems employ compact block rings to maximize sensitivity per axial field-of-view (AFOV) length, thereby resulting in considerable manufacturing costs. To reduce the cost per AFOV length, a sparse block rings configuration is modeled on a Siemens BiographTM mMR PET/MR scanner (sparse-mMR) by removing the coincidence counts from every other detector block ring. Moreover, Continuous Bed Motion (CBM) is performed along a limited distance to eliminate the axial sensitivity gaps. List-mode PET mMR data of the NEMA image quality phantom with 4:1 spheres-to-background ratio was acquired for 30min. The counts were binned assuming a sparse-mMR configuration and a CBM acquisition of constant speed along a distance of 2 blocks (16 detector rings, 6.4cm). The CBM scans were simulated by axially shifting the stationary mMR data to 16 different positions, including a reference, removing the counts associated with any even block rings, and shifting back to the reference position. The process was repeated with different input PET data of equal duration for all 16 positions and the corresponding output data were added. The CBM mode eliminated all axial sensitivity discontinuities by evenly acquiring data throughout the gaps. Contrast recovery (CR) and background variability (BV) were evaluated for PET images reconstructed from sparse-mMR CBM data against mMR and compact-1/2mMR stationary data of equal duration (~5min). The latter consisted of counts associated with only the 4 central mMR block rings. A similar CR performance was attained between the three configurations. Mean BV for sparse-mMR with CBM was 3.6% higher than mMR. Nevertheless, sparse-mMR with CBM attained a smoother axial variation in image noise, relative to compact-1/2mMR. CBM can restore continuity in the axial sensitivity profile of PET systems with sparse block rings to achieve similar contrast recovery and smoother noise variation, compared to compact systems, at half the cost or double the AFOV.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publication2019 IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference, NSS/MIC 2019
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
ISBN (Electronic)9781728141640
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 2019
Externally publishedYes
Event2019 IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference, NSS/MIC 2019 - Manchester, United Kingdom
Duration: 26 Oct 20192 Nov 2019

Publication series

Name2019 IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference, NSS/MIC 2019

Conference

Conference2019 IEEE Nuclear Science Symposium and Medical Imaging Conference, NSS/MIC 2019
Country/TerritoryUnited Kingdom
CityManchester
Period26/10/192/11/19

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Positron Emission Tomography with Sparse Block Rings and Continuous Bed Motion'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this