Improving Pediatric SPECT Imaging: Enhanced Lesion Detection with Dose Reduction through Advanced Reconstruction and Motion Correction

儿童核医学成像已被证明在所有器官中具有重要的临床价值 系统.在提供这种显著的益处时，关键是最大限度地减少儿科中使用的辐射剂量。 患者，其每单位管理活动的不良健康影响（如癌症）风险要高得多 这是因为它们的组织敏感性更高，潜在寿命更长。作为指导原则 将尽可能减少辐射剂量，同时有条不紊地确保病变检测性能 被完全保存了下来。这将通过使用基于数字和医生的确认来实现 观察者在模拟临床执行的任务中测量性能。我们将雇用两名 方法串联，以在保持性能的同时降低剂量。首先，我们将使用先进的 图像重建和处理技术。各种形式的图像质量下降的校正 将被纳入重建，深度学习（DL）将用于重建后 去噪其次，我们将开发方法来纠正身体和呼吸运动， 诊断准确性。校正身体和呼吸运动将允许在不损失 并且还将提供使用镇静或甚至全身麻醉的技术替代方案， 最大限度地减少儿童成像时的运动。为了这项研究，我们选择了99 mTc标记的 二巯基琥珀酸（DMSA）肾成像作为试验平台，以证明我们的方法。损坏 由肾脏感染引起的肾皮质是包括新生儿在内的儿童的关键问题， 幼儿DMSA SPECT是评价肾盂肾炎和术后肾瘢痕形成的“金标准”。 感染我们将展示的概念，减少辐射剂量和修正的运动与DMSA 将可用于儿科成像及其他领域的其他SPECT（和PET）研究。 我们的具体目标是：1。建立调查和评估高级重建的基础设施 和运动校正; 2.通过以下方式确定儿科患者的辐射剂量降低程度 改进的重建和DL去噪，同时保持最佳的全剂量病变检测精度; 3. 开发用于身体和呼吸运动估计的数据驱动和深度传感相机方法， 纠正; 4。进行数值和医生观察员研究，以验证剂量降低水平 通过DL去噪和运动校正实现。

Nuclear medicine imaging in children has been shown to have significant clinical value across all organ systems. In providing this significant benefit it is critical to minimize the radiation dose used in pediatric patients, whose risk for adverse health effects (such as cancer) per unit administered activity is much higher than that of adults, owing to their higher tissue sensitivity and longer potential lifespan. The governing principle of this project will be to minimize radiation dose while methodically ensuring that lesion detection performance is fully preserved. This will be accomplished by using validations based on both numerical and physician observers measuring performance in tasks that emulate those performed clinically. We will employ two approaches in tandem to enable lowering dose while maintaining performance. First, we will use advanced image reconstruction and processing techniques. Corrections for various forms of image quality degradation will be incorporated in the reconstruction, and deep learning (DL) will be used for post-reconstruction denoising. Second, we will develop methods to correct for both body and respiratory motion, which degrade diagnostic accuracy. Correcting for body and respiratory motion will allow dose to be reduced without loss of image quality and will also offer a technological alternative to using sedation or even general anesthesia to minimize motion when imaging children. For this investigation we have selected 99mTc-labeled dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) renal imaging as a testbed to demonstrate our approaches. Damage to the renal cortex resulting from infection of the kidneys is a critical issue in children, including newborns and toddlers. DMSA SPECT is the “gold-standard” in the evaluation of pyelonephritis and renal scarring post- infection. The concepts we will demonstrate for reduction of radiation dose and correction of motion with DMSA will be translatable to other SPECT (and PET) studies in pediatric imaging and beyond. Our Specific Aims are: 1. Establish infrastructure for investigating and evaluating advanced reconstruction and motion correction; 2. Determine the extent of radiation dose reduction to pediatric patients through improved reconstruction and DL denoising while maintaining optimal full-dose lesion detection accuracy; 3. Develop data-driven and depth-sensing camera methods for body and respiratory motion estimation and correction; and 4. Conduct numerical and physician observer studies to validate the level of dose reduction enabled by DL denoising and motion correction.