High-resolution dynamic angiography using flat-panel volume CT: feasibility demonstration for neuro and lower limb vascular applications.

OBJECTIVE: This paper evaluates a prototype flat-panel volume CT (fpVCT) for dynamic in vivo imaging in a variety of neurovascular and lower limb applications. METHODS: Dynamic CTA was performed on 12 patients (neuro = 8, lower limb = 4) using an fpVCT with 120 kVp, 50 mA, rotation time varying from 8 to 19 s, and field of view of 25 × 25 × 18 cm(3). Four-dimensional data sets (i.e. 3D images over time) were reconstructed and reviewed. RESULTS: Dynamic CTA demonstrated sufficient spatio-temporal resolution to elucidate first-pass and recirculation dynamics of contrast bolus through neurovasclaur pathologies and phasic blood flow though lower-limb vasculature and grafts. The high spatial resolution of fpVCT resulted in reduced partial volume and metal beam-hardening artefacts. This facilitated assessment of vascular lumen in the presence of calcified plaque and evaluation of fractures, especially in the presence of fixation hardware. Evaluation of arteriovenous malformation using dynamic fpVCT angiography was of limited utility. CONCLUSIONS: Dynamic CTA using fpVCT can visualize time-varying phenomena in neuro and lower limb vascular applications and has suffcient diagnostic imaging quality to evaluate a number of pathologies affecting these regions. KEY POINTS: • CTA using fpVCT has sufficient spatial and temporal resolution to study phasic blood flow. • CTA using fpVCT reveals recurrence of aneurysms even after clipping/coiling. • fpVCT has reduced partial volume and metal beam-hardening artefacts. • fpVCT can show vessel lumen in the presence of calcified plaque. • CTA using fpVCT can demonstrate vascular supply to transplanted grafts.

Reproducibility of trabecular structure analysis using flat-panel volume computed tomography.

PURPOSE: To determine inter-scan, inter-reader and intra-reader variability of trabecular structure analysis using flat-panel volume computed tomography (fp-VCT) in cadaver knee specimens. METHODS: Five explanted knee specimens were imaged at three different time points using fp-VCT. Four parameters that quantify trabecular bone structure of the proximal tibia were measured by two observers at two different time points. Bland-Altman analysis was used to compute the inter-scan, inter-observer and intra-observer variability. RESULTS: Inter-scan variability was low, with a mean difference of 0% and a standard deviation less than 8.4% for each of the four parameters. The inter-observer and intra-observer variability was less than 2.8% +/- 8.5%. CONCLUSION: Fp-VCT is a method for assessing trabecular structure parameters with low inter-scan, inter-reader and intra-reader variability.

Dynamic imaging of a model of intracranial saccular aneurysms using ultra-high-resolution flat-panel volumetric computed tomography. Laboratory investigation.

OBJECT: Imaging of intracranial aneurysms using conventional multidetector CT (MDCT) is limited because of nonvisualization of features such as perforating vessels, pulsatile blebs, and neck remnants after clip placement or coil embolization. In this study, a model of intracranial saccular aneurysms in rabbits was used to assess the ultra-high resolution and dynamic scanning capabilities of a prototype flat-panel volumetric CT (fpVCT) scanner in demonstrating these features. METHODS: Ten New Zealand white rabbits underwent imaging before and after clipping or coil embolization of surgically created aneurysms in the proximal right carotid artery. Imaging was performed using a prototype fpVCT scanner, a 64-slice MDCT scanner, and traditional catheter angiography. In addition to the slice data and 3D views, 4D dynamic views, a capability unique to fpVCT, were also created and reviewed. The images were subjectively compared on 1) 4 image quality metrics (spatial resolution, noise, motion artifacts, and aneurysm surface features); 2) 4 posttreatment features reflecting the metal artifact profile of the various imaging modalities (visualization of clip or coil placement, perianeurysmal clip/coil anatomy, neck remnant, and white-collar sign); and 3) 2 dynamic features (blood flow pattern and aneurysm pulsation). RESULTS: Flat-panel volumetric CT provided better image resolution than MDCT and was comparable to traditional catheter angiography. The surface features of aneurysms were demonstrated with much higher resolution, detail, and clarity by fpVCT compared with MDCT and angiography. Flat-panel volumetric CT was inferior to both MDCT and angiography in terms of image noise and motion artifacts. In fpVCT images, the metallic artifacts from clips and coils were significantly fewer than those in MDCT images. As a result, clinically important information about posttreatment aneurysm neck remnants could be derived from fpVCT images but not from MDCT images. Time-resolved dynamic sequences were judged slightly inferior to conventional angiography but superior to static MDCT images. CONCLUSIONS: The spatial resolution, surface anatomy visualization, metal artifact profile, and 4D dynamic images from fpVCT are superior to those from MDCT. Flat-panel volumetric CT demonstrates aneurysm surface features to better advantage than angiography and is comparable to angiography in metal artifact profile. Even though the temporal resolution of fpVCT is not quite as good as that of angiography, fpVCT images yield clinically important anatomical information about aneurysm surface features and posttreatment neck remnants not attainable with either angiography or MDCT images.

Flat-panel volume CT: fundamental principles, technology, and applications.

Flat-panel volume computed tomography (CT) systems have an innovative design that allows coverage of a large volume per rotation, fluoroscopic and dynamic imaging, and high spatial resolution that permits visualization of complex human anatomy such as fine temporal bone structures and trabecular bone architecture. In simple terms, flat-panel volume CT scanners can be thought of as conventional multidetector CT scanners in which the detector rows have been replaced by an area detector. The flat-panel detector has wide z-axis coverage that enables imaging of entire organs in one axial acquisition. Its fluoroscopic and angiographic capabilities are useful for intraoperative and vascular applications. Furthermore, the high-volume coverage and continuous rotation of the detector may enable depiction of dynamic processes such as coronary blood flow and whole-brain perfusion. Other applications in which flat-panel volume CT may play a role include small-animal imaging, nondestructive testing in animal survival surgeries, and tissue-engineering experiments. Such versatility has led some to predict that flat-panel volume CT will gain importance in interventional and intraoperative applications, especially in specialties such as cardiac imaging, interventional neuroradiology, orthopedics, and otolaryngology. However, the contrast resolution of flat-panel volume CT is slightly inferior to that of multidetector CT, a higher radiation dose is needed to achieve a comparable signal-to-noise ratio, and a slower scintillator results in a longer scanning time.

Intrinsic respiratory gating in small-animal CT.

Gating in small-animal CT imaging can compensate artefacts caused by physiological motion during scanning. However, all published gating approaches for small animals rely on additional hardware to derive the gating signals. In contrast, in this study a novel method of intrinsic respiratory gating of rodents was developed and tested for mice (n=5), rats (n=5) and rabbits (n=2) in a flat-panel cone-beam CT system. In a consensus read image quality was compared with that of non-gated and retrospective extrinsically gated scans performed using a pneumatic cushion. In comparison to non-gated images, image quality improved significantly using intrinsic and extrinsic gating. Delineation of diaphragm and lung structure improved in all animals. Image quality of intrinsically gated CT was judged to be equivalent to extrinsically gated ones. Additionally 4D datasets were calculated using both gating methods. Values for expiratory, inspiratory and tidal lung volumes determined with the two gating methods were comparable and correlated well with values known from the literature. We could show that intrinsic respiratory gating in rodents makes additional gating hardware and preparatory efforts superfluous. This method improves image quality and allows derivation of functional data. Therefore it bears the potential to find wide applications in small-animal CT imaging.

Musculoskeletal applications of flat-panel volume CT.

Flat-panel volume computed tomography (fpVCT) is a recent development in imaging. We discuss some of the musculoskeletal applications of a high-resolution flat-panel CT scanner. FpVCT has four main advantages over conventional multidetector computed tomography (MDCT): high-resolution imaging; volumetric coverage; dynamic imaging; omni-scanning. The overall effective dose of fpVCT is comparable to that of MDCT scanning. Although current fpVCT technology has higher spatial resolution, its contrast resolution is slightly lower than that of MDCT (5-10HU vs. 1-3HU respectively). We discuss the efficacy and potential utility of fpVCT in various applications related to musculoskeletal radiology and review some novel applications for pediatric bones, soft tissues, tumor perfusion, and imaging of tissue-engineered bone growth. We further discuss high-resolution CT and omni-scanning (combines fluoroscopic and tomographic imaging).

Flat panel computed tomography for non-invasive flow measurement: initial results in in-vitro studies.

The purpose was to evaluate the feasibility of flat panel computed tomography (FPCT) for quantifying flow by analyzing contrast changes along the z-axis in an in-vitro setting. Contrast material was injected in a 3-mm silicone tube at flow rates of 0.1, 0.2, 0.5 and 1.0 ml/s using a commercially available injector pump. FPCT scans of this phantom were performed with a gantry rotation time of 3 s. From this data 41 phases were reconstructed at different points in time using a full and a partial gantry rotation. The differences in the contrast material arrival time and the contrast enhancement along the z-axis were recorded. Flow was calculated from this data and compared to the injector settings. There was a good agreement between the injector settings and the calculated flow rates, but agreement decreased with increasing flow rates. Absolute (percent) mean deviation between the injector settings and calculated flow values was 0.0230 +/- 0.0489ml/s (3.7243 +/- 4.7817%) using the full gantry rotation. Repeated-measurement ANOVA failed to show significant differences between the various techniques (p = 0.9726). FPCT allows for computing flow. While preliminary results indicate a good agreement at low flow rates, further studies are needed to assess this technique for higher flow rates.

Intrinsic gating for small-animal computed tomography: a robust ECG-less paradigm for deriving cardiac phase information and functional imaging.

BACKGROUND: A projection-based method of intrinsic cardiac gating in small-animal computed tomography imaging is presented. METHODS AND RESULTS: In this method, which operates without external ECG monitoring, the gating reference signal is derived from the raw data of the computed tomography projections. After filtering, the derived gating reference signal is used to rearrange the projection images retrospectively into data sets representing different time points in the cardiac cycle during expiration. These time-stamped projection images are then used for tomographic reconstruction of different phases of the cardiac cycle. Intrinsic gating was evaluated in mice and rats and compared with extrinsic retrospective gating. An excellent agreement was achieved between ECG-derived gating signal and self-gating signal (coverage probability for a difference between the 2 measurements to be less than 5 ms was 89.2% in mice and 85.9% in rats). Functional parameters (ventricular volumes and ejection fraction) obtained from the intrinsic and the extrinsic data sets were not significantly different. The ease of use and reliability of intrinsic gating were demonstrated via a chemical stress test on 2 mice, in which the system performed flawlessly despite an increased heart rate. Because of intrinsic gating, the image quality was improved to the extent that even the coronary arteries of mice could be visualized in vivo despite a heart rate approaching 430 bpm. Feasibility of intrinsic gating for functional imaging and assessment of cardiac wall motion abnormalities was successfully tested in a mouse model of myocardial infarction. CONCLUSIONS: Our results demonstrate that self-gating using advanced software postprocessing of projection data promises to be a valuable tool for rodent computed tomography imaging and renders ECG gating with external electrodes superfluous.

Retrospective motion gating in small animal CT of mice and rats.

OBJECTIVES: Implementation and evaluation of retrospective respiratory and cardiac gating of mice and rats using a flat-panel volume-CT prototype (fpVCT). MATERIALS AND METHODS: Respiratory and cardiac gating was implemented by equipping a fpVCT with a small animal monitoring unit. ECG and breathing excursions were recorded and 2 binary gating signals derived. Mice and rats were scanned continuously over 80 seconds after administration of blood-pool contrast media. Projections were chosen to reconstruct volumes that fall within defined phases of the cardiac/respiratory cycle. RESULTS: Multireader analysis indicated that in gated still images motion artifacts were strongly reduced and diaphragm, tracheobronchial tract, heart, and vessels sharply delineated. From 4D series, functional data such as respiratory tidal volume and cardiac ejection fraction were calculated and matched well with values known from literature. DISCUSSION: Implementation of retrospective gating in fpVCT improves image quality and opens new perspectives for functional cardiac and lung imaging in small animals.

High-resolution reconstruction of a waxed heart specimen with flat panel volume computed tomography and rapid prototyping.

A waxed piglet heart was scanned with a flat panel volume computed tomography scanner (voxel size, 0.25 mm). Virtual and real laser-sintered models showed excellent visual concordance with the original. Using an iterative-closest-point algorithm, a very low mean surface distance was found between the original and laser-sintered model (0.26 +/- 0.34 mm). These techniques allow submillimeter 3-dimensional virtual and real reconstructions without destroying the original and might be useful for teaching, research, and planning of cardiac interventions.

Material differentiation by dual energy CT: initial experience.

The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of a differentiation of iodine from other materials and of different body tissues using dual energy CT. Ten patients were scanned on a SOMATOM Definition Dual Source CT (DSCT; Siemens, Forchheim, Germany) system in dual energy mode at tube voltages of 140 and 80 kVp and a ratio of 1:3 between tube currents. Weighted CT Dose Index ranged between 7 and 8 mGy, remaining markedly below reference dose values for the respective body regions. Image post-processing with three-material decomposition was applied to differentiate iodine or collagen from other tissue. The results showed that a differentiation and depiction of contrast material distribution is possible in the brain, the lung, the liver and the kidneys with or without the underlying tissue of the organ. In angiographies, bone structures can be removed from the dataset to ease the evaluation of the vessels. The differentiation of collagen makes it possible to depict tendons and ligaments. Dual energy CT offers a more specific tissue characterization in CT and can improve the assessment of vascular disease. Further studies are required to draw conclusions on the diagnostic value of the individual applications.

Inherently 3-dimensional method for measurement of computed tomographic resolution anisotropy.

OBJECTIVE: Current techniques to measure computed tomography (CT) spatial resolution use separate methods for in-plane and out-of-plane directions. The growing use of near-isotropic voxel size necessitates a new single method that inherently measures resolution in any direction. METHOD: We introduce a method using a set of numerous glass microspheres suspended in a small volume from which a mean sphere image is constructed. Projecting asymptotes after imaging different microsphere sets with decreasing diameters provides an inherently 3-dimensional measure of spatial resolution and anisotropy. We apply the method to both a flat-panel and multidetector CT scanner. RESULTS: The full-width at half-maximum from line profiles through mean sphere in transverse directions corresponds to known microsphere diameters. Increased longitudinal full-width at half-maximum corresponds to known anisotropy, which is larger for a multidetector CT scanner than for a flat-panel CT scanner. CONCLUSIONS: A new single method to measure CT resolution is inherently isotropic.

Ultra-high resolution flat-panel volume CT: fundamental principles, design architecture, and system characterization.

Digital flat-panel-based volume CT (VCT) represents a unique design capable of ultra-high spatial resolution, direct volumetric imaging, and dynamic CT scanning. This innovation, when fully developed, has the promise of opening a unique window on human anatomy and physiology. For example, the volumetric coverage offered by this technology enables us to observe the perfusion of an entire organ, such as the brain, liver, or kidney, tomographically (e.g., after a transplant or ischemic event). By virtue of its higher resolution, one can directly visualize the trabecular structure of bone. This paper describes the basic design architecture of VCT. Three key technical challenges, viz., scatter correction, dynamic range extension, and temporal resolution improvement, must be addressed for successful implementation of a VCT scanner. How these issues are solved in a VCT prototype and the modifications necessary to enable ultra-high resolution volumetric scanning are described. The fundamental principles of scatter correction and dose reduction are illustrated with the help of an actual prototype. The image quality metrics of this prototype are characterized and compared with a multi-detector CT (MDCT).

First performance evaluation of a dual-source CT (DSCT) system.

We present a performance evaluation of a recently introduced dual-source computed tomography (DSCT) system equipped with two X-ray tubes and two corresponding detectors, mounted onto the rotating gantry with an angular offset of 90 degrees . We introduce the system concept and derive its consequences and potential benefits for electrocardiograph [corrected] (ECG)-controlled cardiac CT and for general radiology applications. We evaluate both temporal and spatial resolution by means of phantom scans. We present first patient scans to illustrate the performance of DSCT for ECG-gated cardiac imaging, and we demonstrate first results using a dual-energy acquisition mode. Using ECG-gated single-segment reconstruction, the DSCT system provides 83 ms temporal resolution independent of the patient's heart rate for coronary CT angiography (CTA) and evaluation of basic functional parameters. With dual-segment reconstruction, the mean temporal resolution is 60 ms (minimum temporal resolution 42 ms) for advanced functional evaluation. The z-flying focal spot technique implemented in the evaluated DSCT system allows 0.4 mm cylinders to be resolved at all heart rates. First clinical experience shows a considerably increased robustness for the imaging of patients with high heart rates. As a potential application of the dual-energy acquisition mode, the automatic separation of bones and iodine-filled vessels is demonstrated.