Abstract
The purpose of the present work was to investigate the effects of variable projection-view (PV) and angular dose (AD) distributions on the reconstructed image quality for improving microcalcification detection. The PV densities at central and peripheral sites were varied through the distribution of 21 PVs acquired over ±25° angular range. To vary the AD distribution, 7 PVs in the central region were targeted with two, four and six times the peripheral dose, and the number of central PVs receiving four times the peripheral dose was increased from 3 to 11. The contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) for in-focus plane quality and the full width at half maximum (FWHM) of artifact spread function (ASF) for resolution in the z-direction were used. Although the ASF improved with increasing PV densities at two peripheral sites, the CNRs were inferior to those obtained with other subsets. With increasing PV density in the central area, the vertical resolution decreased but the CNR increased. Although increasing the central PV or AD concentrations improved image quality, excessive central densities reduced image quality by increasing noise in peripheral views.
Highlights
The conventional mammogram used in breast cancer screening and diagnosis [1] provides high sensitivity and specificity for the early detection of non-palpable lesions associated with breast cancer
We investigated the effects of various projection views (PVs) and angular dose (AD) distributions on the quality of reconstructed images obtained using a constant total dose
We tested the effects of varying acquisition parameters, notably PV and AD distributions, on the quality of images reconstructed from data acquired with our prototype Digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) system
Summary
The conventional mammogram used in breast cancer screening and diagnosis [1] provides high sensitivity and specificity for the early detection of non-palpable lesions associated with breast cancer. New flat panel detectors offer extremely high quantum efficiency and high resolution Both film and screen mammography and FFDM provide only 2D imaging; and in the projection of 2D images from 3D anatomical structures, overlapping structures produce shadows and artifacts. In DBT, a form of limitedangle cone-beam computed tomography (CT) [6, 7], a restricted number of 2D projections are acquired within a limited angle. This is generally accomplished by moving the X-ray tube along an arc in the conventional mammography projection geometry. Zhao et al studied the detector performance of an a-Se detector with a pixel size of 85 μm and
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