• Korean Journal of Radiology
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• v.24 no.10
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• pp.1017-1027
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• 2023

Objective: The assessment of cortical integrity following renal injuries with planar Tc-99m dimercaptosuccinic acid (DMSA) scintigraphy depends on measuring relatively decreased cortical uptake (i.e., split renal function [SRF]). We analyzed the additive values of the volumetric and quantitative analyses of the residual cortical integrity using single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) compared to the planar scintigraphy. Materials and Methods: This prospective study included 47 patients (male:female, 32:15; age, 47 ± 22 years) who had non-operatively managed renal injuries and underwent DMSA planar and SPECT imaging 3-6 months after the index injury. In addition to planar SRF, SPECT SRF, cortical volume, and absolute cortical uptake were measured for the injured kidney and both kidneys together. The correlations of planar SRF with SPECT SRF and those of SRF with volumetric/quantitative parameters obtained with SPECT were analyzed. The association of SPECT parameters with renal function, grades of renal injuries, and the risk of renal failure was also analyzed. Results: SPECT SRF was significantly lower than planar SRF, with particularly higher biases in severe renal injuries. Planar and SPECT SRF (dichotomized with a cutoff of 45%) showed 19%-36% of discrepancies with volumetric and quantitative DMSA indices (when dichotomized as either high or low). Absolute cortical uptake of the injured kidney best correlated with glomerular filtration rate (GFR) at follow-up (ρ = 0.687, P < 0.001) with significant stepwise decreases by GFR strata (90 and 60 mL/min/1.73 m²). Total renal cortical uptake was significantly lower in patients with moderate-to-high risk of renal failure than those with low risk. However, SRF did not reflect GFR decrease below 60 mL/min/1.73 m² or the risk of renal failure, regardless of planar or SPECT (count- or volume-based SRF) imaging. Conclusion: Quantitative measurements of renal cortical integrity assessed with DMSA SPECT can provide more clinically relevant and comprehensive information than planar imaging or SRF alone.

• Journal of radiological science and technology
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• v.19 no.1
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• pp.89-94
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• 1996

Misalignment between the electronic and mechanical axes of rotation will result in artifact generation and image degradation during single photon emission computed tomography(SPECT) reconstruction. Acceptance and quality control testing procedures have not emphasized the variability in center of rotation(COR) measurements caused by collimators and the need to verify uniformity across the full collimator field of view (FOV). Variation from the mean COR across the FOV was tested in four different collimators using multiple point source acquisitions. The mean COR was different for each collimator and one of the four had a > 0.5 pixel difference from the mean COR on some area of the FOV, This variation makes this collimator unacceptable for SPECT acquisition. Thus, initial acceptance testing of SPECT collimators should verify a uniform COR across the full FOV and collimators with a variability from the mean COR > 0.5 pixels should be rejected.

• Journal of the Korea Academia-Industrial cooperation Society
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• v.13 no.11
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• pp.5311-5316
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• 2012

Single Photon Emission Computed tomography(SPECT) was performed on 13 healthy adults (average age: 39) to investigate the changes of cerebral blood flow according to brain imaging analysis algorithm. The acquired images were filtered and reconstructed through Filtered Back Projection (FBP) and Ordered Subset Expectation Maximization (OSEM). The brain distribution data of radiopharmaceuticals were compared using Statistical Parametric Mapping (SPM), and the changes of blood flow was expressed in Cluster. As a result, uptake rate was increased in Sub-gyral, Sub-Lobar, Extra-Nuclear, Limbic lobe and Cingulate Gyrus, while uptake rate was decreased in Middle frontal gyrus, Inferior Frontal Gyrus and Precentral Gyrus. The discriminable SPM was shown according to cerebral blood flows in Cluster by the reconstruction algorithm.

• Progress in Medical Physics
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• v.29 no.3
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• pp.81-91
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• 2018

Particulate matter (PM) in dust causes serious pathological conditions, and it has been considered a critical health issue for many years. Respiratory disorders such as bronchitis, asthma, and chronic inflammation, are the most common illnesses due to PM that appears as dust. There is evidence that cardiovascular and neurological abnormalities are caused by PM. Although an extensive amount of work has been conducted on this topic, including studies on the nature of the particles, particle size measurements, particle distribution upon inhalation, the health effects of fine particles, disease prevention, diagnosis, and treatment, to this date, there is still a considerable lack of knowledge in these areas. Therefore, the identification of the key components that cause diseases owing to PM, and the specific diagnoses of the diseases, is important. This review will explore the current literature on the origin and nature of PM and their effects on human health. In addition, it will also highlight the approaches that have been adopted in order to diagnose the effects of PM using positron emission tomography (PET) or single-photon emission computerized tomography (SPECT).

• Journal of Yeungnam Medical Science
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• v.26 no.1
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• pp.15-23
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• 2009

Constant technological developments in coronary artery disease have contributed to the assessment of both the presence of coronary stenosis and its hemodynamic consequences. Hence, noninvasive imaging helps guide therapeutic decisions by providing complementary information on coronary morphology and on myocardial perfusion and metabolism. This can he done using single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) or positron emission tomography (PET) and multidetector CT (MDCT). Advances in image-processing software and the advent of SPECT/CT and PET/CT have paved the way for the combination of image datasets from different modalities, giving rise to hybrid imaging. Three dimensional cardiac hybrid imaging helped to confirm hemodynamic significance in many lesions, add new lesions such as left main coronay artery disease, exclude equivocal defects, correct the corresponding arteries to their allocated defects and identify culprit segment. Cardiac hybrid imaging avoids the mental integration of functional and morphologic images and facilitates a comprehensive interpretation of coronaty lesions and their pathophysiologic adequacy by three dimensional display of fused images, and allows the best evaluation of myocardial territories and the coronary-artery branches that serve each territory. This integration of functional and morphological information were feasible to intuitively convincing and might facilitate development of a comprehensive non-invasive assessment of coronary artery disease.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.32 no.5
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• pp.433-435
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• 1998

Recent progress of technology permits us to assess ventricular function and wall motion as well as myocardial perfusion using electrocardiographic gated myocardial perfusion single photon emission computed tomography (GM-SPECT). It is interesting that echocardiography and magnetic resonance imaging are moving in the same direction with the use of contrast medium to assess myocardial perfusion. A valid fundamental basis for a new technology is essential for a successful competition. Lee et al. report in this issue the reproducibility of serial measurement of left ventricular function including systolic wall thickening using a novel statistical method. It has important implications such as nitroglycerin or dobutamine application during GM-SPECT. The field of nuclear cardiology must continue to strive toward more sophisticated but straightforward evaluation of cardiac diseases.

• The Transactions of the Korea Information Processing Society
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• v.5 no.12
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• pp.3275-3284
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• 1998

In this paper, we deseribe a Medical Image Information System. Our system stores and manages 5 dimensional medical image data and provides the 3 dimensional medical data via the Internet. The Internet standard VR format. VRML(Virtual Reality Modeling Language) is used to represent the 3I) medical image data. The 3D images are reconstructed from medical image data which are enerated by medical imaging systems such ans CT(Computerized Tomography). MRI(Magnetic Resonance Imaging). PET(Positron Emission Tomograph), SPECT(Single Photon Emission Compated Tomography). We implemented the medical image information system shich rses a surface-based rendering method for the econstruction of 3D images from 2D medical image data. In order to reduce the size of image files to be transfered via the Internet. The system can reduce more than 50% for the triangles which represent the surfaces of the generated 3D medical images. When we compress the 3D image file, the size of the file can be redued more than 80%. The users can promptly retrieve 3D medical image data through the Internet and view the 3D medical images without a graphical acceleration card, because the images are represented in VRML. The image data are generated by various types of medical imaging systems such as CT, MRI, PET, and SPECT. Our system can display those different types of medical images in the 2D and the 3D formats. The patient information and the diagnostic information are also provided by the system. The system can be used to implement the "Tele medicaine" systems.

• The Korean Journal of Pain
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.81-86
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• 2011

Background: Facet joint disease plays a major role in axial low-back pain. Few diagnostic tests and imaging methods for identifying this condition exist. Single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) is reported that it has a high sensitivity and specificity in diagnosing facet disease. We prospectively evaluated the use of bone scintigraphy with SPECT for the identification of patients with low back pain who would benefit from medial branch block. Methods: SPECT was performed on 33 patients clinically suspected of facet joint disease. After SPECT, an ultrasound guided medial branch block was performed on all patients. On 28 SPECT-positive patients, medial branch block was performed based on the SPECT findings. On 5 negative patients, medial branch block was performed based on clinical findings. For one month, we evaluated the patients using the visual analogue scale (VAS) and Oswestry disability index. SigmaStat and paired t-tests were used to analyze patient data and compare results. Results: Of the 33 patients, the ones who showed more than 50% reduction in VAS score were assigned 'responders'. SPECT positive patients showed a better response to medial branch blocks than negative patients, but no changes in the Oswestry disability index were seen. Conclusions: SPECT is a sensitive tool for the identification of facet joint disease and predicting the response to medial branch block.

• BMB Reports
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• v.55 no.6
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• pp.267-274
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• 2022

Molecular imaging is used to improve the disease diagnosis, prognosis, monitoring of treatment in living subjects. Numerous molecular targets have been developed for various cellular and molecular processes in genetic, metabolic, proteomic, and cellular biologic level. Molecular imaging modalities such as Optical Imaging, Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Positron Emission Tomography (PET), Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography (SPECT), and Computed Tomography (CT) can be used to visualize anatomic, genetic, biochemical, and physiologic changes in vivo. For in vivo cell imaging, certain cells such as cancer cells, immune cells, stem cells could be labeled by direct and indirect labeling methods to monitor cell migration, cell activity, and cell effects in cell-based therapy. In case of cancer, it could be used to investigate biological processes such as cancer metastasis and to analyze the drug treatment process. In addition, transplanted stem cells and immune cells in cell-based therapy could be visualized and tracked to confirm the fate, activity, and function of cells. In conventional molecular imaging, cells can be monitored in vivo in bulk non-invasively with optical imaging, MRI, PET, and SPECT imaging. However, single cell imaging in vivo has been a great challenge due to an extremely high sensitive detection of single cell. Recently, there has been great attention for in vivo single cell imaging due to the development of single cell study. In vivo single imaging could analyze the survival or death, movement direction, and characteristics of a single cell in live subjects. In this article, we reviewed basic principle of in vivo molecular imaging and introduced recent studies for in vivo single cell imaging based on the concept of in vivo molecular imaging.

• The Korean Journal of Nuclear Medicine
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• v.37 no.4
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• pp.207-218
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• 2003

Myocardial perfusion imaging has been increasingly used to provide prognostic data and guidance on the choice of appropriate management of patients with known or suspected coronary artery disease. The electrocardiogram gated myocardial SPECT program is corning into wide use with an advent of $^{99m}Tc-labeled$ tracers and an improvement of SPECT machines. The gated technique permits measurement of important cardiac prognostic indicators without any further discomforts or radiation burden in patients underwent standard myocardial perfusion SPECT. In addition, gated study significantly improves diagnostic yield by reducing the number of borderline interpretations and could find myocardial stunning and viable myocardium. Gated single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) imaging allows the automated calculation of end-diastolic volume, end-systolic volume, ejection fraction, myocardial mass and the assessment of regional wall motion and thickening, and it have dramatically improved assessment of coronary artery disease in routine nuclear practice. This allows the simultaneous assessment of both perfusion and function within the same acquisition, and serves as a cost-effective technique for providing more diagnostic data with fewer diagnostic tests. Because the diagnostic and prognostic power derived from knowledge of left ventricular function can be added to that provided by assessing myocardial perfusion, gated SPECT imaging has rapidly gained widespread acceptance and is now used on a routine clinical basis in a growing number of laboratories, including South Korea. The gated SPECT technique for measurement of left ventricular parameters has been validated against a variety of well established techniques. In this work, overview of gated myocardial perfusion SPECT focus on functional parameters is presented.