Veterinary Medicine: Bringing low-cost low-dose 3D imaging to the veterinary surgeons treatment room

该项目旨在为兽医提供供小动物使用的3D成像系统(‘Small Animal 3D’[‘SA3D’]系统)，该系统将在2021年3月25日至28日举行的英国小动物兽医协会大会上推出。该系统将是一种低成本、低剂量(与现有2D成像系统相同)的便携式系统，可以提供3D图像，同时不需要购买CT。创新之处在于使用数字断层合成(DT)在兽医应用中创建3D图像。DT通常用于医学成像(例如，乳房筛查)，但目前仅部署在固定的高成本设备中。这些创新是：**创新1：*以一种外形规格提供3D成像，这种外形可以部署在现有兽医治疗室或手术室的标准手术台上，无需改装(包括使用单相电源)。SA3D将在相同的辐射防护法规下运行，并具有与2D相似的运行成本。SA3D可以由兽医或护士操作，不需要专业培训或专门的专业技术人员。**创新2：*提供可以在兽医实践中移动的3D成像，使3D X光成像能够到达患者身边，而不是将患者带到3D X光成像。SA3D将可携带到诊所外，使不能旅行、无法移动或需要紧急访问成像的患者能够快速获得成像诊断。**创新3：*创建一种新的商业模式(用于兽医成像)，创建可应用机器学习的数据“档案”，允许开发新的计算机辅助诊断工具并部署给用户。可以设想，意外发现可以被自动识别以供临床医生检查，例如在调查原发肿瘤时识别肿瘤转移。**创新4：*结合先进的图像处理和数学技术(压缩感测)使用改进的采集协议，以允许增强成像，以便系统能够获得足够质量的图像，用于口腔外具有大像素尺寸的大探测器的牙科成像。这将避免需要获取多个口腔内图像，并避免需要兽医购买兽医口腔内系统。从环境角度来看，减少兽医需要获取CT或(如果没有CT)兽医将病人转介到其他中心进行成像的需要，将具有环境价值。

This project is to deliver a 3D imaging system for small animal use by veterinary surgeons (the 'Small Animal 3D' \['SA3D'\] system) which will be launched at the British Small Animal Veterinary Association Congress 25-28 Mar 2021\. The system will be a low-cost low-dose (~same as existing 2D imaging systems) portable system that can deliver 3D images, whilst avoiding the need to purchase a CT.The innovation is to use 'Digital Tomosynthesis' ('DT') to create 3D images in veterinary applications. DT is routinely used in medical imaging (for instance in breast screening) but is currently only deployed in fixed high-cost installations. The innovations are:**Innovation 1:** Deliver 3D imaging in a form-factor that can be deployed on a standard operating table in an existing veterinarian's treatment room or operating room without modification (including the use of single-phase power). SA3D would operate within the same radiation protection regulations and have similar running costs as 2D. Operation of SA3D can be by the vet or nurse without the need for specialist training or dedicated specialist technicians.**Innovation 2:** Deliver 3D imaging that can be moved within the veterinary practice to enable 3D radiography to travel to the patient, rather than to take the patient to the 3D radiography. SA3D would be portable outside the clinic, enabling quick access to imaging diagnostics to patients who can't travel, cannot be moved, or need urgent access to imaging.**Innovation 3:** Create a new business model (for veterinary imaging) that creates an 'archive' of data to which Machine Learning can be applied to allow new computer-aided diagnostic tools to be developed and deployed to users. It is envisaged that incidental findings could be automatically identified for the clinician to review, such as identifying tumour metastasis when investigating a primary tumour.**Innovation 4:** Use modified acquisition protocols in conjunction with advanced image processing and mathematical techniques (compressed sensing) to allow enhanced imaging such that the system can acquire images of sufficient quality for extraoral dental imaging with a large detector with large pixel sizes. This will avoid the need for multiple intraoral images to be acquired and avoid the need for the vet to acquire a veterinary intraoral system.There will be value in environmental terms of reducing the need for vet practices to acquire a CT or (if no CT is on-site) for vets to refer patients to other centres for imaging.