Advances in quantitative perfusion SPECT imaging

Abstract

Quantitative software for myocardial perfusion single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) has advanced significantly over the last 25 years. The strength and availability of quantitative tools for perfusion SPECT have in many ways provided a competitive advantage to nuclear cardiology compared with other higher-resolution noninvasive imaging modalities for the detection of coronary artery disease. The purpose of this report is to review the advances in quantitative diagnostic software for cardiac SPECT over the past 25 years. The time period ending with the 1980s (“the past”) saw the origins of nuclear cardiology with the development of planar thallium 201 imaging and perfusion SPECT imaging without electrocardiographic gating. The period from 1990 to the present saw the development of gated SPECT imaging providing both perfusion and functional information and attenuation correction SPECT with improved perfusion information. The report concludes with a look into the future, where hybrid multimodality imaging systems may provide a comprehensive noninvasive evaluation with previously unmatched accuracy in a single imaging session.