• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.268-278
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• 2003

Purpose：The aim of this study was to evaluate the striatal binding ratio, the anterior/posterior ratio and reproducibility using a template based registration method using the standard MR template as a replacement for each patients MR image. Materials and Methods：This study analyzed the 123I IPT SPECT images of 30 patients with IPD, who were subdivided into 17 patients (56.6$\pm$10.8 yr, M/F : 8/9.) with mild IPD, and 13 patients (56.4$\pm$11.1 yr, M/F : 8/5) with severe IPD. In addition, 11 normal controls (57.8$\pm$14.4 yr, M/F : 4/7) were also analyzed. The ROIs were positioned manually in the same slice showing the highest striatal activity using the traditional manual method, whereas those were positioned automatically in a mid striatal slice of the SPECT image coregistered to the standard T1 weighted MR template. Results : The specific binding ratio (SBR) obtained using the template based registration method strongly correlated with those using the manual method in all groups : normal controls (r=0.85, P<0.001), mild IPD (r=0.84, P<0.001) and severe IPD (r=0.7, P=0.01). The SBRs obtained using both methods were significantly different among the three groups (P=0.05) and the SBRs obtained by the template based registration method were higher than those by the manual method (P=0.05) in all three groups. The APRs obtained by the template based registration correlated with those using manual method in only mild IPD (r=0.72, P=0.0). The APRs obtained by the template based registration method were significantly different from the normal controls and those with mild or severe IPD (P<0.05), whereas those obtained using the manual method were not significantly different among the three groups (P＞0.1). The reproducibility (rmsCV) of the template based registration method was 7.2% (normal controls：5.2%, mild IPD：4.2%, severe IPD：10.8%), whereas the reproducibility of the manual method was 31% (normal controls：19.7%, mild IPD：21.7%, severe IPD：46.2%). Conclusion：These results show that the use of $^{123}$ I-IPT SPECT for assessing IPD is affected by the methods used to position the striatal ROI. The template based registration method using the standard MR template can be useful in diagnosing IPD and assessing the disease severity with a high reproducibility. Therefore, the template based registration method appears to be a good replacement for the manual method.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.12 no.2
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• pp.115-122
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• 2008

Purpose : To evaluate the correlation between the radiological non-invasive hepatic fibrosis index (RNHFI), as determined by SPIO-enhanced MRI, and the laboratory non-invasive hepatic fibrosis index. Materials and Methods : Patients (99 total: 61 men and 38 women; mean age: 58 years) who underwent SPIO-enhanced MRI (1.5T) during 5 years included. These patients were subdivided into a liver cirrhosis group (LCG) and a non-liver cirrhosis group (non-LCG). Using PACS view, we measured the RNHFI (mean standard deviation of hepatic signal intensity (SD), noise-corrected coefficient of variation (CV)) of three ROIs in the liver parenchyma by SPIO-enhanced MRI. The laboratory non-invasive hepatic fibrosis index (AST-platelet ratio index (APRI)) of all patients was calculated from the laboratory data. We compared the RNHFI and APRI of LCG with those of non-LC group using Student's t-test. A bivariate correlation was performed to investigate the relationship between the RNHFI and APRI in the LCG. Results : For the LCG, mean values of SD and CV by SPIO-enhanced MRI were $10.3{\pm}3.7$ and $0.19{\pm}0.08$, respectively. For the non-LCG, mean values of SD and CV were $6.5{\pm}1.6$ and $0.08{\pm}0.05$, respectively. The mean APRI of the LCG and the non- LCG were $2.04{\pm}1.7$ and $0.32{\pm}0.32$, respectively. The RNHFI and APRI were significantly different between both groups (p<0.05). For the LCG, the bivariate correlation between SD and APRI revealed a statistically significant positive correlation (r=0.5, p<0.001). In both groups, there was no statistically significant correlation between CV and APRI. Conclusion: A measurement of SD can be a simple and useful method for the evaluation of hepatic fibrosis.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.37 no.2
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• pp.94-102
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• 2003

Purpose : Cerebral blood flow (CBF) reactivity to acetazolamide (ACZ) is useful to select patients with hemodynamic failure. However, it is still a matter of speculation that varying degrees of regional CBF increases after ACZ administration represent the severity or stage of regional hemodynamic failure as assessed by positron emission tomography (PET). We studied to elucidate whether ACZ challenge $^{123}I-IMP$ brain single photon emission tomography (SPECT) can accurately grade the seventy of regional hemodynamic failure. Materials and Methods: Eighteen patients (M: 16, F: 2, average age: 61 years) with unilateral occlusive disease of the internal carotid artery or the trunk of the middle cerebral artery (MCA). Patients undewent $^{123}I-IMP$ brain SPECT study with acetazolamide challenge and PET study was carried out within 2 weeks before and after SPECT study. Five healthy volunteers with a mean age of 48 years (range: 28-73 yr, M: 3, F: 2) underwent PET studies to determine normal values. In SPECT study, an asymmetry index (Al)-the percentage of radioactivity of region of interest (ROI) in the occlusive cerebrovascular lesion to the contralateral homologous ROI-was used for numerical evaluation of relative $^{123}I-IMP$ distribution. In PET study, regional CBF, oxygen extraction fraction (OEF), cerebral metabolic rate of oxygen ($CMRO_2$) and cerebral blood volume (CBV) values were measured with $^{15}O-labeled$ gas inhalation method and the values were used for comparison with Al (Al during acetazolamide challenge-Al of basal study) on the SPECT study. ROls were classified by severity into three groups (normal, stage I and stage II). Results: Mean values of Al in areas with normal, stage I and stage II hemodynamic failure were $6.25{\pm}7.77%\;(n=107),\;-10.38{\pm}10.41%\:(n=117)\;and\;13.30{\pm}10.51%\;(n=140)$, respectively. Al significantly differed with each groups (p<0.05). Correlation between Al and CBF, OEF and CBV/CBF in hemisphere with occlusive cerebrovascular lesion was 0.20 (p<0.01), -0.28 (p<0.01) and -0.28 (p<0.01), respectively. Conclusion: We concluded that $^{123}I-IMP$ brain SPECT with acetazolamide challenge could determine the severity ad stage of regional hemodynamic failure as assessed by PET.

• Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging
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• v.43 no.1
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• pp.72-78
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• 2009

Purpose: Bone mineral density (BMD) measurements need to be precise enough to be capable of detecting small changes in bone mass of rats. Using a regular dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA), we measured many BMD of various skeletal sites in rats to examine precision of DXA in relation to the repositioning on the bones of rats. Materials and Methods: Using DXA and small animal software, scans were performed 4 times in all 12 male rats without repositioning (Group 1a). Another four scans for 6 of 12 rats were done with repositioning between scans (Group 2). Customized regions of interest (ROIs), encapsulate the right hind limb, L1-4, skull and pelvic bones were drawn at each measurement. The precision of the measurements was evaluated by measuring the coefficient of variation (CV) of four measurements of BMD at each skeletal site of all rats with or without repositioning. Significance of differences between group 1b (six rats out of group 1a, which were come under group 2) and group2 were evaluated with Wilcoxon Signed Rank Sum Test. Results: CVs obtained at different skeletal sites of all measurements in Group 1b and 2. It was $3.51{\pm}1.20$, $ 2.62{\pm}1.20$ for the hindlimb (p=0.173), $3.83{\pm}2.02$, $4.59{\pm}2.02$ for L1-4 (p=0.600), $3.73{\pm}1.87$, $1.53{\pm}0.89$ for skull (p=0.046), and $2.92{\pm}0.60$, $1.45{\pm}0.60$ for pelvic bones (p=0.075). Conclusion: Our study demonstrates that the DXA technique has the precision necessary when used to assess BMD for various skeletal sites in rats regardless of repositioning.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
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• v.17 no.1
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• pp.53-61
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• 2013

Objectives: It is certain that Radioactive iodine thyroid uptake(RAIU) rate should be measured with the standard counts considering the thyroid gland depth in enlarged thyroid patients for the variation from geometric factors. The purpose of this paper is to consider the effects of geometric factors according to detector to source distance and the effective thyroid depth on RAIU rate with experiment test. Materials and Methods: I-131 370 kBq ($10{\mu}Ci$) point source was measured by Captus-3000 thyroid uptake system (Capintec, NJ, USA) with a change Detector-Source Distance from 20 cm to 30 cm at an interval of 1 cm. And we changed the Neck phantom surface-Source Depth in the phantom with 1 cm, 2 cm, 5 cm using the neck phantom in order to reproduce the effective thyroid depth. Results: Every experimental group follows power curve as inverse square curve ($$R2{\geq_-}0.915$$). The average count rates in the case not using a phantom and the every case applied the effective thyroid depth using a phantom was not identical each other. There was significant fluctuations upon the effective thyroid depths applied the effective thyroid depth above 1 cm in $364.4 keV{\pm}10%$ energy ROI (p<0.01). There was not significant difference between the count rates of 1 cm and 2 cm in $364.4keV{\pm}20%$ and $637.1keV{\pm}6.2%$ (p=0.354, p=0.397). In assumed RAIU rate from regression equation, $364.4keV{\pm}20%$ was lower difference than $364.4keV{\pm}10%$ as 6.42% and 5.09% per 1 cm. Every change of count rate upon depth appears decreased line on Linear Regression, but the case of $284.3keV{\pm}10%$ increased only. And also, The graphs of coefficient of variation upon depth increased as straight line on every experimental group. Conclusion: The result appears that application of $364.4keV{\pm}20%$ energy ROI is more suitable for reducing error from the effective thyroid depth. And also, we can estimate the error of 20 cm should be highly reduced than 30 cm for Inverse Square Law. Therefore, If there is not information of the thyroid depth, it is considered that the error from thyroid depth can reduce through set up energy ROIs for $364.4keV{\pm}20%$, and increase Detector-Source Distances.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine Technology
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• v.17 no.2
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• pp.90-94
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• 2013

Purpose: In the PET/CT images, various artifacts cause degradation of the quantitative assessment. Most hotspot generated by radiopharmaceutical injection errors cause an artifact and degrade the quality of the images as well as the accuracy of the quantitative evaluation. The purpose of this study is to assess effectiveness of the elimination of the hotspot at the injection sites using shifting the center of DFOV (Display Field of View, DFOV) method and evaluate the quantitative evaluation of result. Materials and Methods: GE Discovery STE 16 (GE Healthcare, Milwaukee, USA) and 1994 NEMA phantom were used for imaging acquisition. Phantom was filled with 0.005 MBq/mL of $^{18}F-FDG$. A hotspot was artificially placed on the outside of the phantom. The ratio of hotspot area activity to background area activity was regulated as 200:1. After image acquisition with routine protocol, all of the images were reconstructed using the shifting the center of DFOV method that wasn't overlapped with hotspot. Those images obtained before and after applying the shifting reconstruction method were compared. ROIs (Region Of Interests) were set in the hotspot areas, meanSUVs and standard deviations were calculated. Percentage differences were calculated with those meanSUVs and standard deviations. The evaluation on the effects of the shifting reconstruction method was done by comparison of the meanSUVs and the standard deviations, which were calculated for background areas unaffected by hotspot. Results: In the areas of unaffected by hotspot, meanSUVs before and after applying the shifting of center of DFOV method were $0.67{\pm}0.06g/mL$ and $0.65{\pm}0.06g/mL$, respectively. In the artifact areas affected by hotspot, meanSUVs before and after applying the shifting of center of DFOV method were $0.32{\pm}0.08g/mL$ and $0.56{\pm}0.12g/mL$, respectively. The percentage differences of the area adjacent to the hotspot and the area distant from the hotspot were 65.3% and 97.4%, respectively. Conclusion: In the PET/CT images, meanSUV was improved by 32.1% when the effect of artifact was removed with application of the shifting the center of DFOV methode. In other areas unaffected by artifacts, meanSUVs were not significantly different after applying DFOV center shift method. As shown in the result, adverse effects of hotspot made by swelling in the injection site can be reduced by applying DFOV center shift method. Therefore, DFOV center shift method can be applied for the more precise quantitative evaluation, and contribute to the increase of the diagnostic value of the images.

• Investigative Magnetic Resonance Imaging
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• v.6 no.2
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• pp.120-128
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• 2002

Purpose : To demonstrate that the relaxographic method provides additional information such as the distribution of relaxation times and water content which are poentially applicable to clinical medicine. Materials and Methods : First, the computer simulation was performed with the generated relaxation data to verify the accuracy and reliabilility of the relaxographic method (CONTINI). Secondly, in or der to see how well the CONTIN quantifies and resolves the two different ${T_1}$ environments, we calculated the oil to water peak area ratios and identified peak positions of ${T_1}-distribution$ curve of the phantom solutions, which consist of four centrifugal tubes (10 ml) filled with the compounds of 0, 10, 20, 30% of corn oil and distilled water, using CONTIN. Finally, inversion recovery MR images for a volunteer are acquired for each TI ranged from 40 to 1160 msec with TR/TE=2200/20 msec. From the 3 different ROIs (GM, WM, CSF), CONTIN analysis was performed to obtain the ${T_1}$-distribution curves, which gave peak positions and peak area of each ROI location. Results : The simulation result shows that the errors of peak positions were less in the higher peak (centered ${T_1}=600$ msec) than in the lower peak (centered ${T_1}=150$ msec) for all SNR but the errors of peak areas were larger in the higher peak than in the lower peak. The CONTIN analysis of the measured relaxation data of phantoms revealed two peaks between 20 and 60 msec and between 500 and 700 msec. The analysis gives the peak area ratio as oil 10%: oil 20%: oil 30% = 1:1.3:1.9, which is different from the exact ratio, 1:2:3. For human brain, in ROI 3 (CSF), only one component of -distributions was observed whereas in ROI 1(GM) and in ROI 2 (WM) we observed two components of ${T_1}-distribution$. For the WM and CSF there was great agreement between the observed ${T_1}-relaxation$ times and the reported values. Conclusion : we demonstrated that the relaxographic method provided additional information such as the distribution of relaxation times and water content, which were not available in the routine relaxometry and ${T_1}/{T_2}$ mapping techniques. In addition, these additional information provided by relaxographic analysis may have clinical importance.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.29 no.4
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• pp.249-255
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• 2006

Purpose: The diagnostic utility of fluorine-18 2-deoxy-D-glucose positron emission tomograhpy ($^{18}F-FDG $PET) for the non-invasive differentiation of focal lung lesions originated from cancer or inflammation disease by combined visual image interpretation and semi-quantitative uptake value analysis has been documented. In general, Standardized Uptake Value(SUV) is used to diagnose lung disease. But SUV does not contain dynamic information of lung tissue for the glucose. Therefore, this study was undertaken to hypothesis that analysis of dynamic kinetics of focal lung lesions base on $^{18}F-FDG$ PET may more accurately determine the lung disease. So we compared Time Activity Curve(TAC), Standardized Uptake Value-Dynamic Curve(SUV-DC) graph pattern with Glucose Metabolic Rate(MRGlu) from Patlak analysis. Methods: With lung disease, 17 patients were examined. They were injected with $^{18}F-FDG$ over 30-s into peripheral vein while acquisition of the serial transaxial tomographic images were started. For acquisition protocol, we used twelve 10-s, four 30-s, sixteen 60-s, five 300-s and one 900-s frame for 60 mins. Its images were analyzed by visual interpretation TAC, SUV-DC and a kinetic analysis(Patlak analysis). The latter was based on region of interest(ROIs) which were drawn with the lung disease shape. Each optimized patterns were compared with itself. Results: In TAC patterns, it hard to observe cancer type with inflammation disease in early pool blood area but over the time cancer type slope more remarkably increased than inflammation disease. SUV-DC was similar to TAC pattern. In the result of Patlak analysis, In time activity curve of aorta, even though inflammation disease showed higher blood activity than cancer, at first as time went by, blood activity of inflammation disease became the lowest. However, in time activity curve of tissue, cancer had the highest uptake and inflammation disease was in the middle. Conclusion: Through the examination, TAC and SUV-DC could approached the results that lung cancer type and inflammation disease type has it's own difference shape patterns. Also, it has outstanding differentiation between cancer type and inflammation in Patlak and MRGlu analysis. Through these analysis methods, it will helpful to separation lung disease.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.32 no.3
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• pp.271-276
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• 2009

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of Bone Mineral Density(BMD) at mandible. So, we studied how to measure the BMD at mandible using DEXA(Dual energy X-ray absorptiometry, DEXA) by Horner er al (1996) and knew reproducibility of the measurements. Thirty-five patients (13 men, 22 women, mean age : 25.4 years) were examined using the GE Lunar Prodigy Advance(LUNAR Corporation, madison, USA). They were examined in Semiprone position of their body and true lateral position of their mandible selected the Lumbar lateral mode. We used the custom mode in analysis when ROI (area $30{\times}2.5\;mm^2$). Three ROIs ($30{\times}2.5\;mm^2$, $50{\times}2.5\;mm^2$, $20{\times}2.5\;mm^2$) were located each at the two different sites of the mandible (angle of mandible and mental symphysis) and BMD was measured. Differences in BMD measurement was statistically compared according to the size and location of ROI. BMD was $1.320{\pm}0.358g/cm^3$ in men and was $1.152{\pm}0.340g/cm^3$ in women. BMD at the angle of mandible was $1.201{\pm}0.361g/cm^3$ in men and was $1.025{\pm}0.377g/cm^3$ in women. BMD of men at the mental symphysis was $1.434{\pm}0.341g/cm^3$ and that of women was $1.19{\pm}0.358g/cm^3$. With the ROI of $20{\times}2.5\;mm^2$, BMD was $1.262{\pm}0.384g/cm^3$ in men and was $1.113{\pm}0.357g/cm^3$ in women. With the ROI of $50{\times}2.5\;mm^2$, BMD of men was $1.320{\pm}0.358g/cm^3$ and that of women was $1.129{\pm}0.340g/cm^3$. There was a statistically significant difference of BMD according to the size and location of ROI. When measuring mandible BMD, there are good for increasing ROI and locate between ramus and mental symphysis. Especially following exam, refer to same size and location with fore exam. According to study which measure mandible BMD, It's correct to measure better a portion of mandible then whole of BMD. Using DEXA protocol is studied good for the additional study to compare the BMD at mandible. Later date, It will be good for measurement value in implant and bone graft quantitatively. Using DEXA method gain BMD threshold value in korean.

• Journal of the Korean Society of Radiology
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• v.10 no.4
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• pp.255-261
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• 2016

In this study, among various factors having influence on SUV, we intended to compare and analyze the change of SUV using CT(4 type) and MRI(3 type) contrast agents which are commercialized now. We used Discovery 690 PET/CT(GE) and NEMA NU2 - 1994 PET phantom as experimental equipment. We have conducted a study as follows; first, we filled distilled water to phantom about two-thirds and injected radioisotope(18F-FDG 37 MBq), contrast agent. Second, we mixed CT contrast agent with distilled water and MRI contrast agent with that water separately. And then, we stirred the fluid and filled distilled water fully not to make air bubble. In emission scan, we had 15minutes scanning time after 40 minutes mixing contrast agent with distilled water. In transmission scan, we used CT scanning and its measurement conditions were tube voltage 120 kVp, tube current 40 mA, rotation time 0.5 sec, slice thickness 3.27 mm, DFOV 30 cm. Analyzing results, we set up some ROIs in 10th, 15th, 20th, 25th, 30th slice and measured SUVmean, SUVmax. Consequently, all images mixed 3 types of MRI contrast agent with distilled water have high SUVmean as compared with pure FDG image but there was no statistical significance. In SUVmax, they have high score and there was statistical significance. And other 4 images mixed 4 types of CT contrast agent with distilled water have significance in both SUVmean and SUVmax. Attenuation correction in PET/CT has been executed through various methods to make high quality image. But we figured out that using CT and MRI contrast agents before PET/CT scanning could make distortion of image and decrease diagnostic value. In that reason, we have to sort out the priority of examination in hospital not to disturb other examination's results. Through this process, we will be able to give superior medical service to our customers.