Dose reduction in breast CT by spectrum switching

Koen Michielsen; Christian Fedon; James Nagy; Ioannis Sechopoulos

doi:10.1117/12.2318425

6 July 2018 Dose reduction in breast CT by spectrum switching

Koen Michielsen, Christian Fedon, James Nagy, Ioannis Sechopoulos

Proceedings Volume 10718, 14th International Workshop on Breast Imaging (IWBI 2018); 107180J (2018) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2318425
Event: The Fourteenth International Workshop on Breast Imaging, 2018, Atlanta, Georgia, United States

Abstract

Purpose: To evaluate whether combining a polychromatic reconstruction algorithm for breast CT with projection data acquired using alternating high and low energy spectra allows a significant dose reduction while maintaining image quality. Materials and Methods: A breast phantom was scanned on a clinical breast CT scanner using the automatic exposure control selected exposure at the regular spectrum with a tube voltage of 49 kV and a 1.576 mm aluminum filter and with a second, higher energy spectrum created by adding a 0.254 mm copper filter. An acquisition with spectrum switching was simulated by interleaving projections from the standard and high energy datasets, and a previously developed polychromatic reconstruction algorithm was modified to reconstruct the breast CT images. Image quality was assessed using the signal difference-to-noise ratio (SDNR) of a high and a low contrast target present in the phantom. A Monte Carlo simulation was performed to determine the mean glandular dose (MGD) of each scan. Results: Acquisition of the simulated scan with spectrum switching would result in an MGD of 6.57 mGy, compared to the standard acquisition MGD of 10.4 mGy, a reduction of 37%. At the same time, the measured SDNR of the mixed spectrum reconstructions was slightly higher than that of the standard acquisition, with an increase in SDNR of 6.6% (p < 0.01) for the high contrast target and 5.3% (p = 0.12) for the low contrast target. Conclusion: Our approach combining a polychromatic reconstruction algorithm for breast CT with an advanced acquisition protocol using alternating high and low energy spectra can lower dose by at least a third without loss of target SDNR

Citation Download Citation

Koen Michielsen, Christian Fedon, James Nagy, and Ioannis Sechopoulos "Dose reduction in breast CT by spectrum switching", Proc. SPIE 10718, 14th International Workshop on Breast Imaging (IWBI 2018), 107180J (6 July 2018); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2318425

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