Victor J. Sank

Opening of Blood–ocular Barrier Demonstrated by Contrast-enhanced Mr Imaging

Opening of the blood-ocular barrier following infusion of hyperosmolar agents into the internal carotid artery has been demonstrated by gadolinium enhanced magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. In five rhesus monkeys the disruption of the barrier was shown as increased signal intensity within the aqueous and vitreous humors. These findings suggest a potential use of contrast-enhanced MR imaging for detecting and evaluating the ocular microangiopathy of diabetic and hypertensive retinopathy and other diseases.

FEASIBILITY OF TIME-OF-FLIGHT RECONSTRUCTION IN POSITRON EMISSION TOMOGRAPHY

A feasibility study was carried out to determine whether image quality can be improved by the use of time-of-flight (TOF) information in positron emission tomography (PET). The experiment used two fast cesium fluoride detectors followed by constant-fraction discriminators for coincidence-timing resolutions of 600 to 800 psec full width at half maximum, depending on the energy discrimination level. A point source was scanned to study the spatial response of the point spread function with and without the TOF information for nonfiltered back-projected data. Back-projected images of a simplified chest phantom, 42 cm in diameter and filled with relative activity concentrations of 1.0, and 5, are presented for the unfiltered data to demonstrate the improvement in image quality obtained with the use of TOF. Filtered and reconstructed images of this phantom are also presented to show the relative differences in the images obtained with PET and TOF-PET techniques for similar filter functions.

A COMPUTER ASSISTED RINGDETECTOR POSITRON CAMERA SYSTEM FOR RECONSTRUCTION TOMOGRAPHY OF THE BRAIN

A ring detector positron camera system for brain metabolism studies is being constructed at the Institute of Physics, University of Stockholm, in collaboration with the Departments of Neuroradiology and clinical Neurophysiology, Karolinska Sjukhuset, Stockholm, Sweden. The instrument utilizes 95 NaI(Tl) detectors and will simultaneously record coincidences from 1900 detector combinations. Each detector is coupled in coincidence with forty detectors on the opposite side of the ring. In the conventional stationary mode of operation the experimental system resolution is 10.5 mm. A new sampling technique has been developed to reduce the system resolution. Based on this technique, an experimental system resolution of 7 mm has been obtained.

DETERMINATION OF EFFECTIVE ENERGIES IN CT CALIBRATION

The effective energy of a polychromatic beam for a Computed Tomography (CT) scanner can be measured directly only with difficulty. However, a linear relationship exists between the measured CT numbers and corresponding attenuation coefficients of known materials at the effective energy of the x-ray beam. The effective energy can then be determined by searching all energies for the best linear correlation between the CT numbers and the attenuation coefficients. This can be performed by two methods: graphically, by means of choosing visually the straightest of the fitted lines or, mathematically, by maximizing the correlation coefficient. The energy corresponding to the optimal fit is therefore selected as the effective energy. The latter method was implemented by computer and demonstrated by scanning the AAPM phantom, which contained known materials, and determining the effective energies and the relationship between the linear attenuation coefficients and CT numbers for three commercial units.

SUPPRESSION OF RING ARTEFACTS IN CT FAN-BEAM SCANNERS

A software algorithm is presented which is able to suppress ring-like artefacts which occur in CT fan-beam scanners when the measurements are slightly erroneous in their offset or gain.

TRANSVERSE TOMOGRAPHY WITH INCOHERENT OPTICAL RECONSTRUCTION

A thin layer of an object can be imaged by reconstruction from a so-called sinogram. It is produced by an x-ray fan beam rotating around the object while a recording film is moved in a direction perpendicular to the plane of the fan beam. Before reconstruction the sinogram image is convoluted according to a special function to remove artifacts consisting of spurious shadows between different object elements. The reconstruction is done from the convoluted sinogram by means of a back projector, which operates according to a prinicple that is the reverse of the recording of the original sinogram. Tomograms of phantoms, pork chops and the head of a dog show that the process is capable of high spatial resolution but is limited by low contrast.

OBJECT RECONSTRUCTION FROM FOCUSED POSTRON TOMOGRAMS

A major problem with the reconstruction of three-dimensional object distributions from focused tomographic images using Fourier transforms is the amplification of statistical noise in certain frequency components. This paper describes the use of a generalised matrix inversion technique to limit noise amplification to a level related to the spatial resolution of the imaging system. The reconstruction method is applied to a simulated positron camera, and results are presented on the imaging of an extended, three-dimensional object distribution. A significant improvement in the elimination of the background is achieved.