This study aimed to compare filters for reducing speckle noise in ultrasound images using clinical liver images. We acquired the clinical liver ultrasound images, and noisy images were obtained by adding 0.01, 0.05, 0.10, and 0.50 intensity levels of speckle noise to the liver images. The Wiener filter, median modified Wiener filter, gamma filter, and Lee filter were designed for the noisy images by setting window sizes at 3×3, 5×5, and 7×7. The coefficient of variation (COV) and contrast to noise ratio (CNR) were calculated to evaluate noise reduction and various filters. Moreover, the filter with the highest image quality was selected and quantitatively compared to a noisy image. As a result, COV and CNR showed the noise improved result when the Lee filter was applied. Furthermore, the Lee filter image with a window size of 7×7 was noted to possess approximately a minimum of 1.28 to a maximum of 3.38 times better COV and a minimum of 2.18 to a maximum of 5.50 times better CNR than the noisy image. In conclusion, we confirmed that the Lee filter was effective in reducing speckle noise and proved that an appropriate window size needs to be set considering blurring.

As an auxiliary tool for fixing the patient's posture when taking an X-ray, sponges with high radiolucencies are laminated in various thicknesses. This study aimed to evaluate the usefulness of an auxiliary tool for hand oblique projection X-ray by manufacturing it with a uniform thickness by 3D printing and comparing it with existing sponge tools. In the auxiliary tool, radiolucency was measured at the stairs where each finger was located, and pixel information values were compared in the digital imaging and communications in medicine(DICOM) image. Contrast to noise ratio(CNR) and signal to noise ratio(SNR) were compared by shooting the hand phantom and the auxiliary tool together. As the thickness of the sponge tool increased, radiolucency decreased by 15.52% and pixel information value increased by 20.61%. The transmittance of the 3D printing tool increased by 0.82%, and the pixel information value differed by 5.66%. CNR and SNR increased by 20.03% and 22.42% in 3D printing compared to existing sponge tools. while taking hand oblique projection, maintaining the thickness of the auxiliary tool uniformly through 3D printing maintains high radiolucency and minimal impact on medical images, and increases CNR and SNR, making it useful as an auxiliary tool for taking hand oblique projection.

This study developed education contents of measuring spatial dose with virtual reality simulation and applied to students majoring radiological science. The virtual reality(VR) contents with measuring spatial dose rate in the radiation controlled area was developed based on the simulation from pilot study. In this simulation, the tube voltage and tube current can be set from 60 to 120 kVp in 10 kVp steps and 10 to 40 mAs in 10 mAs increments, and the distance from source can be set from 30 to 400 cm continuously. Iron and lead shields can be placed between the source and the detector, and shielding thickness can be set by 1 mm increments ranging from 1 to 20 mm. We surveyed to students for evaluating improvement of understanding spatial dose rate between before and after education by VR simulation. The survey was conducted with 5 questions(X-ray exposure factors, effects by distance from the source, effects from using shield, depending on material and thickness of shield, concept and measuring of spatial dose rate) and all answers showed significant improvement. Therefore, this VR simulation content will be well used in education for spatial dose rate and radiation safety environments.

This study used a adult absorption dose phantom (CIRS model 701-G, USA) made of human equivalent material and the vascular imaging equipment Allura Xper FD 20 (Philips, Netherlands). Optically stimulated luminescent dosimeters (OSLD) were inserted into the anatomical positions corresponding to each organ, and the exposure dose was measured. Dose area product (DAP) and air kerma (AK) measured by the dose meter in the equipment were compared. Continuous imaging was performed at two angles for a total of 20 minutes, with a frame per seconds of 3.75 and 7.5 fps and an FOV of 42 cm, 37 cm, and 31 cm, respectively, under the conditions of fluoflavor I, II, and III, each selected for 5 repetitions. This study was found that selecting a lower fps was the most effective way to reduce patient exposure dose, and adjusting the fluoflavor was a good alternative method for reducing patient exposure dose at high fps. Therefore the method of condition change with the greatest dose reduction effect is to set the minimum FPS and can reduce patient exposure dose according to geometric conditions and fluoflavor characteristics.

This study analyzed imaging conditions and exposure index through clinical information collection and dose calculation programs in coronary angiography examinations. Through this, we aim to analyze the effective dose according to examination conditions and provide basic data for dose optimization. In this study, ALARA(As Low As Reasonably Achievable)-F(Fluoroscopy), a program for evaluating the radiation dose of patients and the collected clinical data, was used. First, analysis of imaging conditions and exposure index was performed based on the data of the dose report generated after coronary angiography. Second, after evaluating organ dose according to 9 imaging directions during coronary angiography, with the LAO fixed at 30°, dose evaluation was performed according to tube voltage, tube current, number of frames, focus-skin distance, and field size. Third, the effective dose for each organ was calculated according to the tissue weighting factors presented in ICRP(International Commission on Radiological Protection) recommendations. As a result, the average sum of air kerma during coronary angiography was evaluated as 234.0±112.1 mGy, the dose-area product was 25.9±13.0 Gy·cm², and the total fluoroscopy time was 2.5±2.0 min. Also, the organ dose tended to increase as the tube voltage, milliampere-second, number of frames, and irradiation range increased, whereas the organ dose decreased as the FSD increased. Therefore, medical radiation exposure to patients can be reduced by selecting the optimal tube voltage and field size during coronary angiography, maximizing the focal-skin distance, using the lowest tube current possible, and reducing the number of frames.

This study was intended to evaluate the shielding rate of radiation shields manufactured using 3D printers that have recently been used in various fields by comparing them with existing shields made of lead, and to find out their applicability through experiments. A 3D printer shield made of tungsten filament 1 mm, 2 mm, 4 mm shield, RNS-TX (nanotungsten) 1.1 mm, lead 0.2 mmPb, and 1mmPb were exposed to ^99mTc, ¹⁸F, and ²⁰¹TI for 15, 30, 45 minutes, and 60 minutes after measuring cumulative dose three times. Based on this, the shielding rate of each shield was calculated based on the dose in the absence of the shield. In addition, ^99mTc, ¹⁸F, and ²⁰¹TI were located 100 cm away from the phantom in which the OSLD nano Dot device was inserted, and if there was no shield for 60 minutes, the dose of thyroid was measured using 1.0 mm of lead shield, 1.1 mm of RNS-TX shield, and 2 mm of tungsten shield made by 3D printer. The use of shields during radiation shielding emitted from open radiation sources all resulted in a reduction in dose. The radiation dose emitted from the radionuclides under the experiment was all reduced when the shield was used. This study has been confirmed that tungsten is a material that can replace lead due to its excellent performance and efficiency as shield, and that it even shows the possibility of manufacturing a customized shield using 3D printer.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the clinical risk of spinal radiosurgery by calculating the dose difference due to dose calculation algorithm and multi-leaf collimator positioning error. The images acquired by the CT simulator were recalculated by correcting the multi-leaf collimator position in the dose verification program created using MATLAB and applying stoichiometric calibration and Monte Carlo algorithm. With multi-leaf collimator positioning error, the clinical target volume (CTV) showed a dose difference of up to 13% in the dose delivered to the 95% volume, while the gross tumor volume (GTV) showed a dose difference of 9%. The average dose delivered to the total volume showed dose variation from -8.9% to 9% and -10.1% to 10.2% for GTV and CTV, respectively. The maximum dose delivered to the total volume of the spinal cord showed a dose difference from -14.2% to 19.6%, and the dose delivered to the 0.35 ㎤ volume showed a dose difference from -15.5% to 19.4%. In future research, automating the linkage between treatment planning systems and dose verification programs would be useful for spinal radiosurgery.

This study aimed to implement a deep learning model that can perform quantitative quality control through ACTS software used for quantitative evaluation of ACR phantom in CT quality control and evaluate its usefulness. By changing the scanning conditions, images of three modules of the ACR phantom's slice thickness (ST), low contrast resolution (LC), and high contrast resolution (HC) were obtained and classified as ACTS software. The deep learning model used ResNet18, implementing three models in which ST, HC, and LC were learned with epoch 50 and an integrated model in which three modules were learned with Epoch 10, 30, and 50 at once. The performance of each model was evaluated through Accuracy and Loss. When comparing and evaluating the accuracy and loss function values of the deep learning models by ST, LC, and HC modules, the Accuracy and Loss of the HC model were the best with 100% and 0.0081, and in the integrated model according to the Epoch value, Accuracy and Loss with epoch 50 were the best with 96.29% and 0.1856. This paper showed that quantitative quality control is possible through a deep learning model, and it can be used as a basis and evidence for applying deep learning to the CT quality control.

In this study, the aim was to assess the shielding performance of different 3D printing materials, specifically those produced using FDM, SLA, and CJP methods, with a focus on their application as shielding devices in clinical settings. Additionally, the weight of lead shielding materials can evoke reluctance in pediatric patients undergoing X-ray imaging. A total of 12 materials were printed using their respective 3D printers. These materials were then subjected to X-ray testing using diagnostic X-ray equipment and an exposure meter. The goal was to evaluate their shielding capabilities in comparison to 1 mm lead. The results of this evaluation revealed that VisiJet PXL-Pastel, produced using the CJP method, exhibited the highest shielding performance. Therefore, VisiJet PXL-Pastel by CJP method was selected for the creation of a shielding device designed for pediatric reproductive organs. Subsequent tests demonstrated that both the newly created shielding device and conventional lead shielding equipment achieved the same maximum shielding rate at 50 kVp. Specifically, the shielding rate for the 3D printed device was measured at 84.53%, while the conventional lead shielding equipment, categorized as Apron1 (85.74%), Apron2 (99.98%), and Apron3 (99.04%), demonstrated similar performance. In conclusion, the CJP-produced VisiJet PXL-Pastel material showcased excellent radiation shielding capabilities, allowing for anatomical observations of the target organs and their surrounding structures in X-ray images. Furthermore, its lower weight in comparison to traditional lead shielding materials makes it a clinically practical and useful choice, particularly for pediatric applications.

This study aimed to understand the correlations of prevalence and relevant variables of cholelithiasis with a group of cirrhosis patients and a control group targeting the subjects who received the abdomen ultrasonography from K university hospital in Daejeon Metropolitan City from January 1^st 2019 to December 31^st. And the results are as follows. First, the group of cirrhosis patients showed relatively higher prevalence of cholelithiasis than the control group as ordinary people, which showed statistically significant differences. Second, in the control group, there were statistically significant differences in the occurrence of cholelithiasis with respect to age. Conversely, in the cirrhosis patient, there was no statistically significant association observed with age; nonetheless, age itself exhibited statistical significance. Third, according to sex, the prevalence was not statistically significant in both group of cirrhosis patients and control group. Fourth, in each degree and cause of subdivided cirrhosis, the correlation was only shown in each degree. In the results of this study, the cirrhosis patients showed high correlation with the incidence of cholelithiasis, and the control group showed the high correlation with the incidence of cholelithiasis according to age.