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At least 523 records · Page 29

Hepatic Arterial Embolization Using Cone Beam CT with Tumor Feeding Vessel Detection Software: Impact on Hepatocellular Carcinoma Response

PurposeDedicated tumor feeding vessel detection software (TFVDS) using cone beam CT has shown a higher sensitivity to detect tumor feeding vessels during hepatic arterial embolization (HAE) of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) compared to 2D imaging. Our primary hypothesis was that HCC tumors treated with HAE guided by a TFVDS would show more complete response (CR) than when treated with 2D imaging alone. Secondary analysis of the impact on X-ray exposure was performed.Materials and MethodsNineteen males and 8 females (median age: 69 year, 46–85) with 44 tumors (median size: 38 mm, 6–100) treated with selective HAE between January 2013 and December 2014 were included. Exclusion criteria were: extra-hepatic supply, >4 tumors, tumor size >10 cm, and adjunctive local therapy. Baseline patient and procedure characteristics were reviewed. Differences in CR per modified Response Evaluation Criteria in Solid Tumors were assessed by univariate and multivariate analyses for tumor size, number, location, particles size, and use of TFVDS.ResultsMedian imaging follow-up was 20.1 months (2–33). Use of TFVDS (13 patients, 19 tumors) was the only factor predictive of CR (OR = 3.85 [CI95%: 1.09, 13.67], p = 0.04) on univariate analysis but not on multivariate analysis (OR = 3.26 [0.87, 12.23], p = 0.08). A higher rate of CR was observed for HAE using TFVDS guidance versus 2D imaging alone (68.4%, 13–19, vs. 36%, 9–25, p = 0.03). Median dose area product was lower when TFVDS was used (149.7 Gy.cm{sup 2}, 38–365, vs. 227.8 Gy.cm{sup 2}, 85.3–468.6, p = 0.05).ConclusionsHCC embolized with TFVDS may result in improved local tumor response without increasing the dose exposure.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗

SU-E-J-166: Sensitivity of Clinically Relevant Dosimetric Parameters to Contouring Uncertainty During Post Implant Dosimetry of Prostate Permanent Seed Implants

Purpose: There is a strong evidence relating post-implant dosimetry for permanent seed prostate brachytherpy to local control rates. The delineation of the prostate on CT images, however, represents a challenge as it is difficult to confidently identify the prostate borders from soft tissue surrounding it. This study aims at quantifying the sensitivity of clinically relevant dosimetric parameters to prostate contouring uncertainty. Methods: The post-implant CT images and plans for a cohort of 43 patients, who have received I–125 permanent prostate seed implant in our centre, were exported to MIM Symphony LDR brachytherapy treatment planning system (MIM Software Inc., Cleveland, OH). The prostate contours in post-implant CT images were expanded/contracted uniformly for margins of ±1.00mm, ±2.00mm, ±3.00mm, ±4.00mm and ±5.00mm (±0.01mm). The values for V100 and D90 were extracted from Dose Volume Histograms for each contour and compared. Results: The mean value of V100 and D90 was obtained as 92.3±8.4% and 108.4±12.3% respectively (Rx=145Gy). V100 was reduced by −3.2±1.5%, −7.2±3.0%, −12.8±4.0%, −19.0±4.8%, − 25.5±5.4% for expanded contours of prostate with margins of +1mm, +2mm, +3mm, +4mm, and +5mm, respectively, while it was increased by 1.6±1.2%, 2.4±2.4%, 2.7±3.2%, 2.9±4.2%, 2.9±5.1% for the contracted contours. D90 was reduced by −6.9±3.5%, −14.5±6.1%, −23.8±7.1%, − 33.6±8.5%, −40.6±8.7% and increased by 4.1±2.6%, 6.1±5.0%, 7.2±5.7%, 8.1±7.3% and 8.1±7.3% for the same set of contours. Conclusion: Systematic expansion errors of more than 1mm may likely render a plan sub-optimal. Conversely contraction errors may Result in labeling a plan likely as optimal. The use of MRI images to contour the prostate should results in better delineation of prostate organ which increases the predictive value of post-op plans. Since observers tend to overestimate the prostate volume on CT, compared with MRI, the impact of the contouring uncertainty on V100 and D90 fortunately, has a conservative effect of underestimating the prostate coverage.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

SU-F-J-194: Development of Dose-Based Image Guided Proton Therapy Workflow

Purpose: To implement image-guided proton therapy (IGPT) based on daily proton dose distribution. Methods: Unlike x-ray therapy, simple alignment based on anatomy cannot ensure proper dose coverage in proton therapy. Anatomy changes along the beam path may lead to underdosing the target, or overdosing the organ-at-risk (OAR). With an in-room mobile computed tomography (CT) system, we are developing a dose-based IGPT software tool that allows patient positioning and treatment adaption based on daily dose distributions. During an IGPT treatment, daily CT images are acquired in treatment position. After initial positioning based on rigid image registration, proton dose distribution is calculated on daily CT images. The target and OARs are automatically delineated via deformable image registration. Dose distributions are evaluated to decide if repositioning or plan adaptation is necessary in order to achieve proper coverage of the target and sparing of OARs. Besides online dose-based image guidance, the software tool can also map daily treatment doses to the treatment planning CT images for offline adaptive treatment. Results: An in-room helical CT system is commissioned for IGPT purposes. It produces accurate CT numbers that allow proton dose calculation. GPU-based deformable image registration algorithms are developed and evaluated for automatic ROI-delineation and dose mapping. The online and offline IGPT functionalities are evaluated with daily CT images of the proton patients. Conclusion: The online and offline IGPT software tool may improve the safety and quality of proton treatment by allowing dose-based IGPT and adaptive proton treatments. Research is partially supported by Mevion Medical Systems.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

SIMS instrumentation and methodology for mapping of co-localized molecules

We describe an innovative mode for localizing surface molecules. In this methodology, individual C{sub 60} impacts at 50 keV are localized using an electron emission microscope, EEM, synchronized with a time-of-flight mass spectrometer for the detection of the concurrently emitted secondary ions. The instrumentation and methodologies for generating ion maps are presented. The performance of the localization scheme depends on the characteristics of the electron emission, those of the EEM and of the software solutions for image analysis. Using 50 keV C{sub 60} projectiles, analyte specific maps and maps of co-emitted species have been obtained. The individual impact sites were localized within 1-2 μm. A distinctive feature of recording individual impacts is the ability to identify co-emitted ions which originate from molecules co-located within ∼10 nm.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

Optimizing cone beam CT scatter estimation in egs-cbct for a clinical and virtual chest phantom

Purpose: Cone beam computed tomography (CBCT) image quality suffers from contamination from scattered photons in the projection images. Monte Carlo simulations are a powerful tool to investigate the properties of scattered photons.egs-cbct, a recent EGSnrc user code, provides the ability of performing fast scatter calculations in CBCT projection images. This paper investigates how optimization of user inputs can provide the most efficient scatter calculations. Methods: Two simulation geometries with two different x-ray sources were simulated, while the user input parameters for the efficiency improving techniques (EITs) implemented inegs-cbct were varied. Simulation efficiencies were compared to analog simulations performed without using any EITs. Resulting scatter distributions were confirmed unbiased against the analog simulations. Results: The optimal EIT parameter selection depends on the simulation geometry and x-ray source. Forced detection improved the scatter calculation efficiency by 80%. Delta transport improved calculation efficiency by a further 34%, while particle splitting combined with Russian roulette improved the efficiency by a factor of 45 or more. Combining these variance reduction techniques with a built-in denoising algorithm, efficiency improvements of 4 orders of magnitude were achieved. Conclusions: Using the built-in EITs inegs-cbct can improve scatter calculation efficiencies by more than 4 orders of magnitude. To achieve this, the user must optimize the input parameters to the specific simulation geometry. Realizing the full potential of the denoising algorithm requires keeping the statistical uncertainty below a threshold value above which the efficiency drops exponentially.

46 INSTRUMENTATION RELATED TO NUCLEAR SCIENCE AND ↗

SU-D-17A-07: Development and Evaluation of a Prototype Ultrasonography Respiratory Monitoring System for 4DCT Reconstruction

Purpose: Respiratory motion artifacts are commonly seen in the abdominal and thoracic CT images. A Real-time Position Management (RPM) system is integrated with CT simulator using abdominal surface as a surrogate for tracking the patient respiratory motion. The respiratory-correlated four-dimensional computed tomography (4DCT) is then reconstructed by GE advantage software. However, there are still artifacts due to inaccurate respiratory motion detecting and sorting methods. We developed an Ultrasonography Respiration Monitoring (URM) system which can directly monitor diaphragm motion to detect respiratory cycles. We also developed a new 4DCT sorting and motion estimation method to reduce the respiratory motion artifacts. The new 4DCT system was compared with RPM and the GE 4DCT system. Methods: Imaging from a GE CT scanner was simultaneously correlated with both the RPM and URM to detect respiratory motion. A radiation detector, Blackcat GM-10, recorded the X-ray on/off and synchronized with URM. The diaphragm images were acquired with Ultrasonix RP system. The respiratory wave was derived from diaphragm images and synchronized with CT scanner. A more precise peaks and valleys detection tool was developed and compared with RPM. The motion is estimated for the slices which are not in the predefined respiratory phases by using block matching and optical flow method. The CT slices were then sorted into different phases and reconstructed, compared with the images reconstructed from GE Advantage software using respiratory wave produced from RPM system. Results: The 4DCT images were reconstructed for eight patients. The discontinuity at the diaphragm level due to an inaccurate identification of phases by the RPM was significantly improved by URM system. Conclusion: Our URM 4DCT system was evaluated and compared with RPM and GE 4DCT system. The new system is user friendly and able to reduce motion artifacts. It also has the potential to monitor organ motion during therapy.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗

gPhoton: THE GALEX PHOTON DATA ARCHIVE

gPhoton is a new database product and software package that enables analysis of GALEX ultraviolet data at the photon level. The project’s stand-alone, pure-Python calibration pipeline reproduces the functionality of the original mission pipeline to reduce raw spacecraft data to lists of time-tagged, sky-projected photons, which are then hosted in a publicly available database by the Mikulski Archive at Space Telescope. This database contains approximately 130 terabytes of data describing approximately 1.1 trillion sky-projected events with a timestamp resolution of five milliseconds. A handful of Python and command-line modules serve as a front end to interact with the database and to generate calibrated light curves and images from the photon-level data at user-defined temporal and spatial scales. The gPhoton software and source code are in active development and publicly available under a permissive license. We describe the motivation, design, and implementation of the calibration pipeline, database, and tools, with emphasis on divergence from prior work, as well as challenges created by the large data volume. We summarize the astrometric and photometric performance of gPhoton relative to the original mission pipeline. For a brief example of short time-domain science capabilities enabled by gPhoton, we show new flares from the known M-dwarf flare star CR Draconis. The gPhoton software has permanent object identifiers with the ASCL (ascl:1603.004) and DOI (doi:10.17909/T9CC7G). This paper describes the software as of version v1.27.2.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗

A Refined Global Segmentation of X-Ray CT Images for Multi-phase Geomaterials

X-ray computed tomography images of three-phase silica sand and glass bead specimens are analyzed and used to evaluate the segmentation performances of Otsu-, and recursion-based multilevel algorithms. A global image segmentation technique that combines iterative and recursive algorithms, namely a refined statistics-based global segmentation is proposed for segmenting multi-phase granular geomaterials. The performance of the proposed algorithm is tested by segmenting partially saturated silica sand and glass bead specimens. For the tested silica sand specimen, the refined statistics method estimated void ratio and degree of saturation were 0.67 and 39.35%. The estimates for the glass bead specimen yielded 0.64 and 43.49%, respectively. The true void ratio (0.66) and degree of saturation (37.71%) were determined with a user-controlled Image processing software package—Image-Pro. It was found that the proposed method estimated the void ratio and the degree of saturation with 1.52 and 4.35 percent errors for the silica sand and with 15.63 and 0.34 percent errors for the glass bead, respectively. The computational time of the proposed method was found to be shorter than other methods considered. Overall, it is concluded that the proposed technique performed better in segmenting three-phase granular geomaterials.

42 ENGINEERING↗

SU-F-R-08: Can Normalization of Brain MRI Texture Features Reduce Scanner-Dependent Effects in Unsupervised Machine Learning?

Purpose: To reduce differences in features calculated from MRI brain scans acquired at different field strengths with or without Gadolinium contrast. Methods: Brain scans were processed for 111 epilepsy patients to extract hippocampus and thalamus features. Scans were acquired on 1.5 T scanners with Gadolinium contrast (group A), 1.5T scanners without Gd (group B), and 3.0 T scanners without Gd (group C). A total of 72 features were extracted. Features were extracted from original scans and from scans where the image pixel values were rescaled to the mean of the hippocampi and thalami values. For each data set, cluster analysis was performed on the raw feature set and for feature sets with normalization (conversion to Z scores). Two methods of normalization were used: The first was over all values of a given feature, and the second by normalizing within the patient group membership. The clustering software was configured to produce 3 clusters. Group fractions in each cluster were calculated. Results: For features calculated from both the non-rescaled and rescaled data, cluster membership was identical for both the non-normalized and normalized data sets. Cluster 1 was comprised entirely of Group A data, Cluster 2 contained data from all three groups, and Cluster 3 contained data from only groups 1 and 2. For the categorically normalized data sets there was a more uniform distribution of group data in the three Clusters. A less pronounced effect was seen in the rescaled image data features. Conclusion: Image Rescaling and feature renormalization can have a significant effect on the results of clustering analysis. These effects are also likely to influence the results of supervised machine learning algorithms. It may be possible to partly remove the influence of scanner field strength and the presence of Gadolinium based contrast in feature extraction for radiomics applications.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Pelvic Normal Tissue Contouring Guidelines for Radiation Therapy: A Radiation Therapy Oncology Group Consensus Panel Atlas

Purpose: To define a male and female pelvic normal tissue contouring atlas for Radiation Therapy Oncology Group (RTOG) trials. Methods and Materials: One male pelvis computed tomography (CT) data set and one female pelvis CT data set were shared via the Image-Guided Therapy QA Center. A total of 16 radiation oncologists participated. The following organs at risk were contoured in both CT sets: anus, anorectum, rectum (gastrointestinal and genitourinary definitions), bowel NOS (not otherwise specified), small bowel, large bowel, and proximal femurs. The following were contoured in the male set only: bladder, prostate, seminal vesicles, and penile bulb. The following were contoured in the female set only: uterus, cervix, and ovaries. A computer program used the binomial distribution to generate 95% group consensus contours. These contours and definitions were then reviewed by the group and modified. Results: The panel achieved consensus definitions for pelvic normal tissue contouring in RTOG trials with these standardized names: Rectum, AnoRectum, SmallBowel, Colon, BowelBag, Bladder, UteroCervix, Adnexa{sub R}, Adnexa{sub L}, Prostate, SeminalVesc, PenileBulb, Femur{sub R}, and Femur{sub L}. Two additional normal structures whose purpose is to serve as targets in anal and rectal cancer were defined: AnoRectumSig and Mesorectum. Detailed target volume contouring guidelines and images are discussed. Conclusions: Consensus guidelines for pelvic normal tissue contouring were reached and are available as a CT image atlas on the RTOG Web site. This will allow uniformity in defining normal tissues for clinical trials delivering pelvic radiation and will facilitate future normal tissue complication research.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗

SU-G-IeP4-02: Application of Changs Attenuation Correction Technique for SPECT Partial Angle Acquisition of Jaszczak Phantom

Purpose: Chang’s mathematical formulation is a common method of attenuation correction applied on reconstructed Jaszczak phantom images. Though Chang’s attenuation correction method has been used for 360° angle acquisition, its applicability for 180° angle acquisition remains a question with one vendor’s camera software producing artifacts. The objective of this work is to ensure that Chang’s attenuation correction technique can be applied for reconstructed Jaszczak phantom images acquired in both 360° and 180° mode. Methods: The Jaszczak phantom filled with 20 mCi of diluted Tc-99m was placed on the patient table of Siemens e.cam™ (n = 2) and Siemens Symbia™ (n = 1) dual head gamma cameras centered both in lateral and axial directions. A total of 3 scans were done at 180° and 2 scans at 360° orbit acquisition modes. Thirty two million counts were acquired for both modes. Reconstruction of the projection data was performed using filtered back projection smoothed with pre reconstruction Butterworth filter (order: 6, cutoff: 0.55). Reconstructed transaxial slices were attenuation corrected by Chang’s attenuation correction technique as implemented in the camera software. Corrections were also done using a modified technique where photon path lengths for all possible attenuation paths through a pixel in the image space were added to estimate the corresponding attenuation factor. The inverse of the attenuation factor was utilized to correct the attenuated pixel counts. Results: Comparable uniformity and noise were observed for 360° acquired phantom images attenuation corrected by the vendor technique (28.3% and 7.9%) and the proposed technique (26.8% and 8.4%). The difference in uniformity for 180° acquisition between the proposed technique (22.6% and 6.8%) and the vendor technique (57.6% and 30.1%) was more substantial. Conclusion: Assessment of attenuation correction performance by phantom uniformity analysis illustrated improved uniformity with the proposed algorithm compared to the camera software.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

SU-F-J-81: Evaluation of Automated Deformable Registration Between Planning Computed Tomography (CT) and Daily Cone Beam CT Images Over the Course of Prostate Cancer Radiotherapy

Purpose: To compute daily dose delivered during radiotherapy, deformable registration needs to be relatively fast, automated, and accurate. The aim of this study was to evaluate the performance of commercial deformable registration software for deforming between two modalities: planning computed tomography (pCT) images acquired for treatment planning and cone beam (CB) CT images acquired prior to each fraction of prostate cancer radiotherapy. Methods: A workflow was designed using MIM Software™ that aligned and deformed pCT into daily CBCT images in two steps: (1) rigid shifts applied after daily CBCT imaging to align patient anatomy to the pCT and (2) normalized intensity-based deformable registration to account for interfractional anatomical variations. The physician-approved CTV and organ and risk (OAR) contours were deformed from the pCT to daily CBCT over the course of treatment. The same structures were delineated on each daily CBCT by a radiation oncologist. Dice similarity coefficient (DSC) mean and standard deviations were calculated to quantify the deformable registration quality for prostate, bladder, rectum and femoral heads. Results: To date, contour comparisons have been analyzed for 31 daily fractions of 2 of 10 of the cohort. Interim analysis shows that right and left femoral head contours demonstrate the highest agreement (DSC: 0.96±0.02) with physician contours. Additionally, deformed bladder (DSC: 0.81±0.09) and prostate (DSC: 0.80±0.07) have good agreement with physician-defined daily contours. Rectum contours have the highest variations (DSC: 0.66±0.10) between the deformed and physician-defined contours on daily CBCT imaging. Conclusion: For structures with relatively high contrast boundaries on CBCT, the MIM automated deformable registration provided accurate representations of the daily contours during treatment delivery. These findings will permit subsequent investigations to automate daily dose computation from CBCT. However, improved methods need to be investigated to improve deformable results for rectum contours.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

A 7.4 kHz, 20-bit image encoder with a CMOS linear image sensor

This paper presents a unique CMOS linear image sensor for reading the pseudo-random code on the slit disc, focusing on the two aspects of low noise and readout rate. Each pixel is equipped with an exclusive integral readout circuit, and the shape of the pixel also matches the slit disc, making the output signal consistent by up to 99%. After subdivision, the absolute angle data can be captured with an angular resolution of 16 bits and a maximum speed of 7.4 kHz. In addition, decoding and subdivision methods are suitable for high-speed, inexpensive encoder systems.

42 ENGINEERING↗

Multi-institutional Validation Study of Commercially Available Deformable Image Registration Software for Thoracic Images

Purpose: To assess the accuracy of the commercially available deformable image registration (DIR) software for thoracic images at multiple institutions. Methods and Materials: Thoracic 4-dimensional (4D) CT images of 10 patients with esophageal or lung cancer were used. Datasets for these patients were provided by DIR-lab ( (dir-lab.com)) and included a coordinate list of anatomic landmarks (300 bronchial bifurcations) that had been manually identified. Deformable image registration was performed between the peak-inhale and -exhale images. Deformable image registration error was determined by calculating the difference at each landmark point between the displacement calculated by DIR software and that calculated by the landmark. Results: Eleven institutions participated in this study: 4 used RayStation (RaySearch Laboratories, Stockholm, Sweden), 5 used MIM Software (Cleveland, OH), and 3 used Velocity (Varian Medical Systems, Palo Alto, CA). The ranges of the average absolute registration errors over all cases were as follows: 0.48 to 1.51 mm (right-left), 0.53 to 2.86 mm (anterior-posterior), 0.85 to 4.46 mm (superior-inferior), and 1.26 to 6.20 mm (3-dimensional). For each DIR software package, the average 3-dimensional registration error (range) was as follows: RayStation, 3.28 mm (1.26-3.91 mm); MIM Software, 3.29 mm (2.17-3.61 mm); and Velocity, 5.01 mm (4.02-6.20 mm). These results demonstrate that there was moderate variation among institutions, although the DIR software was the same. Conclusions: We evaluated the commercially available DIR software using thoracic 4D-CT images from multiple centers. Our results demonstrated that DIR accuracy differed among institutions because it was dependent on both the DIR software and procedure. Our results could be helpful for establishing prospective clinical trials and for the widespread use of DIR software. In addition, for clinical care, we should try to find the optimal DIR procedure using thoracic 4D-CT data.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗

SU-E-J-22: A Feasibility Study On KV-Based Whole Breast Radiation Patient Setup

Purpose: In room kilovoltage x-ray (kV) imaging provides higher contrast than Megavoltage (MV) imaging with faster acquisition time compared with on-board cone-beam computed tomography (CBCT), thus improving patient setup accuracy and efficiency. In this study we evaluated the clinical feasibility of utilizing kV imaging for whole breast radiation patient setup. Methods: For six breast cancer patients with whole breast treatment plans using two opposed tangential fields, MV-based patient setup was conducted by aligning patient markers with in room lasers and MV portal images. Beam-eye viewed kV images were acquired using Varian OBI system after the set up process. In house software was developed to transfer MLC blocks information overlaying onto kV images to demonstrate the field shape for verification. KV-based patient digital shift was derived by performing rigid registration between kV image and the digitally reconstructed radiography (DRR) to align the bony structure. This digital shift between kV-based and MV-based setup was defined as setup deviation. Results: Six sets of kV images were acquired for breast patients. The mean setup deviation was 2.3mm, 2.2mm and 1.8mm for anterior-posterior, superior-inferior and left-right direction respectively. The average setup deviation magnitude was 4.3±1.7mm for six patients. Patient with large breast had a larger setup deviation (4.4–6.2mm). There was no strong correlation between MV-based shift and setup deviation. Conclusion: A preliminary clinical workflow for kV-based whole breast radiation setup was established and tested. We observed setup deviation of the magnitude below than 5mm. With the benefit of providing higher contrast and MLC block overlaid on the images for treatment field verification, it is feasible to use kV imaging for breast patient setup.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

SU-E-J-266: A Pitfall of a Deformable Image Registration in Lung Cancer

Purpose: For four-dimensional (4D) planning and adaptive radiotherapy, deformable image registration (DIR) is needed and the accuracy is essential. We evaluated the accuracy of one free-downloadable DIR software library package (NiftyReg) and one commercial DIR software (MIM) in lung SBRT cancer patients. Methods: A rigid and non-rigid registrations were implemented to our in-house software. The non-rigid registration algorithm of the NiftyReg and MIM was based on the free-form deformation. The accuracy of the two software was evaluated when contoured structures to peak-inhale and peak-exhale 4DCT image data sets were measured using the dice similarity coefficient (DSC). The evaluation was performed in 20 lung SBRT patients. Results: In our visual evaluation, the eighteen cases show good agreement between the deformed structures for the peak-inhale phase and the peak-exhale phase structures (more than 0.8 DSC value). In the evaluation of the DSC in-house software, averaged DSC values of GTV and lung, heart, spinal cord, stomach and body were 0.862 and 0.979, 0.932, 0.974, 0.860, 0.998, respectively. As the Resultof the registration using the MIM program in the two cases which had less than 0.7 DSC value when analyzed using the in-house software, the DSC value were improved to 0.8. The CT images in a case with low DSC value shows the tumor was surrounded by the structure with the similar CT values, which were the chest wall or the diaphragm. Conclusion: Not only a free-downloadable DIR software but also a commercial software may provide unexpected results and there is a possibility that the results would make us misjudge the treatment planning. Therefore, we recommend that a commissioning test of any DIR software should be performed before clinical use and we should understand the characteristics of the software.

60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES↗

Phantom Study Investigating the Accuracy of Manual and Automatic Image Fusion with the GE Logiq E9: Implications for use in Percutaneous Liver Interventions

PurposeTo determine the accuracy of automatic and manual co-registration methods for image fusion of three-dimensional computed tomography (CT) with real-time ultrasonography (US) for image-guided liver interventions.Materials and MethodsCT images of a skills phantom with liver lesions were acquired and co-registered to US using GE Logiq E9 navigation software. Manual co-registration was compared to automatic and semiautomatic co-registration using an active tracker. Also, manual point registration was compared to plane registration with and without an additional translation point. Finally, comparison was made between manual and automatic selection of reference points. In each experiment, accuracy of the co-registration method was determined by measurement of the residual displacement in phantom lesions by two independent observers.ResultsMean displacements for a superficial and deep liver lesion were comparable after manual and semiautomatic co-registration: 2.4 and 2.0 mm versus 2.0 and 2.5 mm, respectively. Both methods were significantly better than automatic co-registration: 5.9 and 5.2 mm residual displacement (p < 0.001; p < 0.01). The accuracy of manual point registration was higher than that of plane registration, the latter being heavily dependent on accurate matching of axial CT and US images by the operator. Automatic reference point selection resulted in significantly lower registration accuracy compared to manual point selection despite lower root-mean-square deviation (RMSD) values.ConclusionThe accuracy of manual and semiautomatic co-registration is better than that of automatic co-registration. For manual co-registration using a plane, choosing the correct plane orientation is an essential first step in the registration process. Automatic reference point selection based on RMSD values is error-prone.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗

Leveraging latest computer science tools to advance nuclear cardiology

Nuclear cardiology has unique advantages compared to other modalities, since the image analysis is already much more automated compared to what is currently clinically performed for CT, MR, or echocardiography imaging. The diverse image and clinical data available to assess coronary disease function, perfusion, flow, and associated CT data provide new opportunities, but logistically these additional assessments increase the overall complexity of SPECT/PET reporting, necessitating additional expertise and time. The advances in artificial intelligence software can be leveraged to obtain comprehensive risk predictions and diagnoses from all available data. They will allow nuclear cardiology to retain competitive edge compared to other modalities and improve its overall clinical utility. These tools will enhance diagnosis and risk prediction beyond what is possible by subjective visual analysis and mental integration of data by physicians.

62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE↗