Development of in vivo characterization of breast tissues through absolute attenuation coefficients using dedicated cone-beam CT

Priti Madhav; Christina M. Li; Martin P. Tornai

doi:10.1117/12.845064

18 March 2010 Development of in vivo characterization of breast tissues through absolute attenuation coefficients using dedicated cone-beam CT

Priti Madhav, Christina M. Li, Martin P. Tornai

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 7622, Medical Imaging 2010: Physics of Medical Imaging; 762209 (2010) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.845064
Event: SPIE Medical Imaging, 2010, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

With advances in 3D in vivo imaging technology, non-invasive procedures can be used to characterize tissues to identify tumors and monitor changes over time. Using a dedicated breast CT system with a quasi-monochromatic cone-beam x-ray source and flat-panel digital detector, this study was performed in an effort to directly characterize different materials in vivo based on their absolute attenuation coefficients. CT acquisitions were first acquired using a multi-material rod phantom with acrylic, delrin, polyethylene, fat-equivalent, and glandular-equivalent plastic rods, and also with a human cadaver breast. Projections were collected with and without a beam stop array for scatter correction. For each projection, the 2D scatter was estimated with cubic spline interpolation of the average values behind the shadow of each beam stop overlapping the object. Scatter-corrected projections were subsequently calculated by subtracting the scatter images containing only the region of the object from corresponding projections (consisting of primary and scatter x-rays) without the beam stop array. Iterative OSTR was used to reconstruct the data and estimate the non-uniform attenuation distribution. Preliminary results show that with reduced beam hardening from the x-ray beam, scatter correction further reduces the cupping artifact, improves image contrast, and yields attenuation coefficients < 8% of narrow-beam values of the known materials (range 1.2 - 7.8%). Peaks in the histogram showed clear separation between the different material attenuation coefficients. These findings indicate that minimizing beam hardening and applying scatter correction make it practical to directly characterize different tissues in vivo using absolute attenuation coefficients.

Citation Download Citation

Priti Madhav, Christina M. Li, and Martin P. Tornai "Development of in vivo characterization of breast tissues through absolute attenuation coefficients using dedicated cone-beam CT", Proc. SPIE 7622, Medical Imaging 2010: Physics of Medical Imaging, 762209 (18 March 2010); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.845064

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

;

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE