Abstract: A method of correcting for attenuation during emission imaging in a gamma camera medical imaging system. Attenuation values are determined empirically and are stored in a look-up table in a memory that is readable by the imaging system, with each attenuation value corresponding to a given thickness value. The attenuation values are computed before imaging is performed by first measuring the number of photons which pass from a transmission source through various known depths of water or another suitable model attenuator, using the same radiation source as will be used for emission imaging. For each depth, the measurement is then used to compute the actual attenuation for a thickness of the model attenuator. The attenuation is then stored as a value in the look-up table with corresponding values of attenuator thickness and is later used to correct emission data for the effects of attenuation.

Abstract: A method of reconstructing an image in a medical imaging system comprises the steps of detecting transverse rays and oblique rays using a limited range of projection angles. The limited range of projection angles is achieved by either limiting the range of rotation of the detectors at each position along the z axis, or by causing the detectors to trace a continuous-motion helical path along the z axis. Data is then rebinned to create a stack of partially-complete sinograms corresponding to individual transverse slice images corresponding to, in the aggregate, a three-dimensional image. Because of the limited projection angles, each sinogram represents an incomplete data set. The rebinning includes, for each oblique ray, identifying among the sinograms the images intersected by the ray, and, applying to each of the sinograms associated with the images intersected by the ray an increment that is representative of the ray.

Abstract: A method of calibrating an attenuation map for use in emission imaging in a gamma camera system. The attenuation map is generated using a transmission scan of the object of interest. The map includes a number of attenuation coefficients for the object. A computer program for generating the attenuation map includes an instruction for scaling the attenuation coefficients in the map from the transmission energy level to the emission energy level using a scaling factor. The scaling factor includes an effective attenuation coefficient for water, which is determined empirically. To determine the effective attenuation coefficient, the number of photons which pass from a transmission source through known depths of water using the emission energy level is counted. The effective attenuation coefficient is computed based on a standard equation describing the attenuation of photons by an absorber. The scaling factor used by the computer program is then set based on the effective attenuation coefficient.

Abstract: An apparatus for reducing image artifacts caused by over-ranging or clipping of the data collected in a tomographic scan using a patient support, models the density profile of the patient support with a polynomial. Coefficients of the polynomial are stored in a look-up table according to gantry angle and used to estimate the over-range data. The estimated data is blended with the in-range data by convolving an over-range mask indicating which data is in-range and which data is over-range with a box car convolution kernel which produces a trapezoidal weighting mask. This weighting mask is multiplied by the estimated data and then summed to the in-range data to correct for the over-range portions of the data collected.

Abstract: An apparatus for reducing image artifacts caused by over-ranging or clipping of the data collected in a tomographic scan fits a geometric model to the in-range data of each projection. The geometric model is sized to the in-range data by summing all of the data of the projection to obtain a value of the total slice volume. This geometric model is used to compute the slope of the over-range data from the last point of in-range data and this extrapolated data is substituted for the over-range data. The correction process is implemented in pipeline form by convolving an over-range mask indicating which data is in-range and which data is over-range with a box car convolution kernel which produces a trapezoidal correction mask. This correction mask, multiplied by the uncorrected projection data provides the appropriate slope to its clipped portions.