Translational Development of Photon-Counting CT Imaging

自2015年以来，研究用光子计数CT扫描仪已安装在NIH临床中心的放射学和成像科学部。在过去的5年中，研究小组对光子计数与传统图像的临床质量进行了比较，并且在标准临床成像应用中无法检测到这些技术之间的任何差异，例如腹部盆腔对比增强CT，低剂量肺部筛查CT，腹部和头颈部的计算机断层扫描血管造影术（CTA）以及脑CT。 2018年，该研究团队的成员发生了变化，并与杜克大学医学物理系合作，将重点转向基于临床任务的扫描仪性能医学物理评估。这些基于任务的评估，包括比较通常在腹部的软组织测量，探索降低到非常低的辐射剂量成像的影响，血管成像和应用于肺和骨成像的更高分辨率能力的评价。 临床成像任务的一个示例是冠状动脉的优化血管成像。 在这项研究中，该团队与NHLBI的科学家合作，以表征光子计数区分冠状动脉体模中高密度碘化造影剂和相邻钙的能力。 该研究小组目前专注于两个领域：确定扫描仪/探测器复合体的最大分辨率和利用多能量（光谱）成像能力。这些能力可用于成像创新的造影剂，如Bisphosphate。

The investigational Photon-Counting CT scanner has been installed in the Radiology and Imaging Sciences Department at NIH Clinical Center since 2015. Over the last 5 years, the research team conducted comparisons of the clinical quality of the Photon-counting vs conventional images and was not able to detect any difference between these techniques in standard clinical imaging applications such as abdominal pelvic contrast enhanced CT, low dose lung screening CT, computed tomographic angiography (CTA) of the abdomen and head and neck, and cerebral CT. In 2018 the research team changed in membership and redirected focus toward clinical task-based medical physics assessments of scanner performance in collaboration with Duke University Medical Physics Department. These task based assessments, include comparison of soft tissue measures of comparison typically in the abdomen, explorations of impact of lowering to very low radiation dose imaging, vascular imaging and evaluation of higher resolution capabilities applied to imaging of the lung and bone. An example of clinical imaging tasks is the optimize vascular imaging of coronary arteries. In this study the team collaborated with scientists from NHLBI to characterize the capabilities of photon counting to distinguish between high density iodinated contrast and adjacent calcium in coronary artery phantoms. The research team is currently focused on two areas: to determine the maximal resolution of the scanner/detector complex and to leverage multi-energy (spectral) imaging capabilities. These capabilities may be used to image innovative contrast agents such as Bismuth.