Annual Physics Testing Research Articles

The value of the signal intensity ratio of the extraocular muscle and the ipsilateral white matter of the MRI in the evaluation of the activity of thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy

Objective To investigate the quantitative value of the signal intensity ratio of extraocular muscle and ipsilateral white matter measured by MRI for the evaluation of activity in thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy. Methods A total of 129 patients and 245 eyeballs with thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy were enrolled in this study and this 245 eyeballs were set as thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy group(TAO group). There were 10 patients with newly diagnosed Graves′ disease and in the same period and these 20 eyeballs were set as graves′ disease group(GD group). 32 normal people from annual physical test excluded thyroid and eye diseases and their 64 eyes were selected randomly for the normal control group (NC group). The signal intensity of the extraocular muscle and the ipsilateral white matter on the MRI images were measured, while did exophthalmos and the width of the inner fat of eyeballs(FWs)measurements in the same time. Results SIR, FWs, and exophthalmos of TAO group were higher than those of the other 2 groups[SIRs: 1.71(1.40, 2.10)vs 1.26(1.22, 1.34)and 1.23(1.14, 1.32); FWs: 8.04(6.70, 8.71)mm vs 6.16(4.86, 7.08)mm and 6.93(6.41, 7.65)mm, exophthalmos: 20.10(18.56, 22.15)mm vs 15.40(14.87, 16.60)mm and 14.73(13.40, 16.07)mm, all P 0.05). The SIRs and CAS had a positive correlation(r=0.580, P=0.000), through the receiver operating characteristic curve(ROC)we get the best diagnostic performance of TAO activity when the SIR≥1.56(sensibility=65.6%, specificity=89.1%, AUC=0.815, P=0.000). Conclusion The signal intensity ratio of extraocular muscle and ipsilateral white matter may discriminate the activity of TAO early as a quantitative indicator, reflecting its efficacy, and is worth clinically generalizing. (Chin J Endocrinol Metab, 2018, 34: 106-111) Key words: Thyroid-associated ophthalmopathy; Signal intensity ratio of extraocular muscle to ipsilateral white matter; Activity evaluation; Quantitative indicator

MO‐AB‐206‐01: PET Physics

This education session will cover the physics and operation principles of gamma cameras and PET scanners.The first talk will focus on PET imaging. An overview of the principles of PET imaging will be provided, including positron decay physics, and the transition from 2D to 3D imaging. More recent advances in hardware and software will be discussed, such as time‐of‐flight imaging, and improvements in reconstruction algorithms that provide for options such as depth‐of‐interaction corrections. Quantitative applications of PET will be discussed, as well as the requirements for doing accurate quantitation. Relevant performance tests will also be described. Learning Objectives: Be able to describe basic physics principles of PET and operation of PET scanners. Learn about recent advances in PET scanner hardware technology. Be able to describe advances in reconstruction techniques and improvements Be able to list relevant performance tests.The second talk will focus on gamma cameras. The Nuclear Medicine subcommittee has charged a task group (TG177) to develop a report on the current state of physics testing of gamma cameras, SPECT, and SPECT/CT systems. The report makes recommendations for performance tests to be done for routine quality assurance, annual physics testing, and acceptance tests, and identifies those needed satisfy the ACR accreditation program and The Joint Commission imaging standards. The report is also intended to be used as a manual with detailed instructions on how to perform tests under widely varying conditions.Learning Objectives:At the end of the presentation members of the audience will: Be familiar with the tests recommended for routine quality assurance, annual physics testing, and acceptance tests of gamma cameras for planar imaging. Be familiar with the tests recommended for routine quality assurance, annual physics testing, and acceptance tests of SPECT systems. Be familiar with the tests of a SPECT/CT system that include the CT images for SPECT reconstructions. Become knowledgeable of items to be included in annual acceptance testing reports including CT dosimetry and PACS monitor measurements.T. Turkington, GE Healthcare

MO‐AB‐206‐00: Nuclear Medicine Physics and Testing

This education session will cover the physics and operation principles of gamma cameras and PET scanners.The first talk will focus on PET imaging. An overview of the principles of PET imaging will be provided, including positron decay physics, and the transition from 2D to 3D imaging. More recent advances in hardware and software will be discussed, such as time‐of‐flight imaging, and improvements in reconstruction algorithms that provide for options such as depth‐of‐interaction corrections. Quantitative applications of PET will be discussed, as well as the requirements for doing accurate quantitation. Relevant performance tests will also be described. Learning Objectives: Be able to describe basic physics principles of PET and operation of PET scanners. Learn about recent advances in PET scanner hardware technology. Be able to describe advances in reconstruction techniques and improvements Be able to list relevant performance tests.The second talk will focus on gamma cameras. The Nuclear Medicine subcommittee has charged a task group (TG177) to develop a report on the current state of physics testing of gamma cameras, SPECT, and SPECT/CT systems. The report makes recommendations for performance tests to be done for routine quality assurance, annual physics testing, and acceptance tests, and identifies those needed satisfy the ACR accreditation program and The Joint Commission imaging standards. The report is also intended to be used as a manual with detailed instructions on how to perform tests under widely varying conditions.Learning Objectives:At the end of the presentation members of the audience will: Be familiar with the tests recommended for routine quality assurance, annual physics testing, and acceptance tests of gamma cameras for planar imaging. Be familiar with the tests recommended for routine quality assurance, annual physics testing, and acceptance tests of SPECT systems. Be familiar with the tests of a SPECT/CT system that include the CT images for SPECT reconstructions. Become knowledgeable of items to be included in annual acceptance testing reports including CT dosimetry and PACS monitor measurements.T. Turkington, GE Healthcare

MO‐AB‐206‐02: Testing Gamma Cameras Based On TG177 WG Report

This education session will cover the physics and operation principles of gamma cameras and PET scanners.The first talk will focus on PET imaging. An overview of the principles of PET imaging will be provided, including positron decay physics, and the transition from 2D to 3D imaging. More recent advances in hardware and software will be discussed, such as time‐of‐flight imaging, and improvements in reconstruction algorithms that provide for options such as depth‐of‐interaction corrections. Quantitative applications of PET will be discussed, as well as the requirements for doing accurate quantitation. Relevant performance tests will also be described. Learning Objectives: Be able to describe basic physics principles of PET and operation of PET scanners. Learn about recent advances in PET scanner hardware technology. Be able to describe advances in reconstruction techniques and improvements Be able to list relevant performance tests.The second talk will focus on gamma cameras. The Nuclear Medicine subcommittee has charged a task group (TG177) to develop a report on the current state of physics testing of gamma cameras, SPECT, and SPECT/CT systems. The report makes recommendations for performance tests to be done for routine quality assurance, annual physics testing, and acceptance tests, and identifies those needed satisfy the ACR accreditation program and The Joint Commission imaging standards. The report is also intended to be used as a manual with detailed instructions on how to perform tests under widely varying conditions.Learning Objectives:At the end of the presentation members of the audience will: Be familiar with the tests recommended for routine quality assurance, annual physics testing, and acceptance tests of gamma cameras for planar imaging. Be familiar with the tests recommended for routine quality assurance, annual physics testing, and acceptance tests of SPECT systems. Be familiar with the tests of a SPECT/CT system that include the CT images for SPECT reconstructions. Become knowledgeable of items to be included in annual acceptance testing reports including CT dosimetry and PACS monitor measurements.T. Turkington, GE Healthcare

TH-AB-210-01: Basics of Gamma Camera Operations and Quality Assurance

This education session will cover the basic physics and operation principles of gamma cameras and PET scanners. In addition, quality control tests to assure good image quality are described. The first talk will discuss the components of gamma cameras, image formation principles, and performance characteristics, such as spatial resolution, sensitivity, and energy resolution. Features that affect these performance characteristics will be discussed. Physicists are increasingly expected to perform annual performance tests on gamma cameras, not only as good practice, but to satisfy requirements of accrediting bodies or for insurance reimbursement. The Joint Commission has recently introduced changes in standards for accredited entities providing diagnostic imaging services, including nuclear medicine. Basic performance tests suitable for annual physics testing will be discussed. Learning Objectives: 1. Be able to describe basic principles of gamma camera operation. 2. Learn about performance characteristics and features affecting image quality. 3. Be able to list some basic performance tests for gamma cameras, how to perform the tests and evaluate acceptable performance. The second talk will focus on PET imaging. An overview of the principles of PET imaging will be provided, including positron decay physics, and the transition from 2D to 3D imaging. More recent advances in hardware and software will be discussed, such as time-of-flight imaging, and improvements in reconstruction algorithms that provide for options such as depth-of-interaction corrections. Quantitative applications of PET will be discussed, as well as the requirements for doing accurate quantitation. Relevant performance tests will also be described. Learning Objectives: 1. Be able to describe basic physics principles of PET and operation of PET scanners. 2. Learn about recent advances in PET scanner hardware technology. 3. Be able to describe advances in reconstruction techniques and improvements 4. Be able to list relevant performance tests. Turkington: Research support from GE for PET work, and has served as a consultant for Data Spectrum Corp.

TH-AB-210-00: Nuclear Medicine 101

This education session will cover the basic physics and operation principles of gamma cameras and PET scanners. In addition, quality control tests to assure good image quality are described. The first talk will discuss the components of gamma cameras, image formation principles, and performance characteristics, such as spatial resolution, sensitivity, and energy resolution. Features that affect these performance characteristics will be discussed. Physicists are increasingly expected to perform annual performance tests on gamma cameras, not only as good practice, but to satisfy requirements of accrediting bodies or for insurance reimbursement. The Joint Commission has recently introduced changes in standards for accredited entities providing diagnostic imaging services, including nuclear medicine. Basic performance tests suitable for annual physics testing will be discussed. Learning Objectives: 1. Be able to describe basic principles of gamma camera operation. 2. Learn about performance characteristics and features affecting image quality. 3. Be able to list some basic performance tests for gamma cameras, how to perform the tests and evaluate acceptable performance. The second talk will focus on PET imaging. An overview of the principles of PET imaging will be provided, including positron decay physics, and the transition from 2D to 3D imaging. More recent advances in hardware and software will be discussed, such as time-of-flight imaging, and improvements in reconstruction algorithms that provide for options such as depth-of-interaction corrections. Quantitative applications of PET will be discussed, as well as the requirements for doing accurate quantitation. Relevant performance tests will also be described. Learning Objectives: 1. Be able to describe basic physics principles of PET and operation of PET scanners. 2. Learn about recent advances in PET scanner hardware technology. 3. Be able to describe advances in reconstruction techniques and improvements 4. Be able to list relevant performance tests. Turkington: Research support from GE for PET work, and has served as a consultant for Data Spectrum Corp.

TH-AB-210-02: PET Imaging: Basic Principles and Recent Advances

This education session will cover the basic physics and operation principles of gamma cameras and PET scanners. In addition, quality control tests to assure good image quality are described. The first talk will discuss the components of gamma cameras, image formation principles, and performance characteristics, such as spatial resolution, sensitivity, and energy resolution. Features that affect these performance characteristics will be discussed. Physicists are increasingly expected to perform annual performance tests on gamma cameras, not only as good practice, but to satisfy requirements of accrediting bodies or for insurance reimbursement. The Joint Commission has recently introduced changes in standards for accredited entities providing diagnostic imaging services, including nuclear medicine. Basic performance tests suitable for annual physics testing will be discussed. Learning Objectives: 1.Be able to describe basic principles of gamma camera operation. 2.Learn about performance characteristics and features affecting image quality. 3.Be able to list some basic performance tests for gamma cameras, how to perform the tests and evaluate acceptable performance. The second talk will focus on PET imaging. An overview of the principles of PET imaging will be provided, including positron decay physics, and the transition from 2D to 3D imaging. More recent advances in hardware and software will be discussed, such as time-of-flight imaging, and improvements in reconstruction algorithms that provide for options such as depth-of-interaction corrections. Quantitative applications of PET will be discussed, as well as the requirements for doing accurate quantitation. Relevant performance tests will also be described. Learning Objectives: 1.Be able to describe basic physics principles of PET and operation of PET scanners. 2.Learn about recent advances in PET scanner hardware technology. 3.Be able to describe advances in reconstruction techniques and improvements 4.Be able to list relevant performance tests. Turkington: Research support from GE for PET work, and has served as a consultant for Data Spectrum Corp.

WE‐D‐18A‐02: Performance Evaluation of Automatic Exposure Control (AEC) Across 12 Clinical CT Systems

Purpose:Automatic exposure control (AEC) is not typically evaluated or monitored in CT quality assurance programs. The purpose of this study was to develop/evaluate a new AEC testing platform for the clinical physics program at our institution, and characterize AEC performance across different CT systems.Methods:The Mercury Phantom comprises three tapered and four uniform regions of polyethylene(16, 23, 30, and 37 cm in diameter); each region includes four inserts: air, Polystyrene, Acrylic, and Teflon. The phantom was imaged using AEC and a fixed tube current technique across 12 clinical CT scanners. Those included five Siemens Somatom Definition Flash, four GE Discovery CT750HD, and three GE Lightspeed VCT systems. A custom MATLAB software package provided MTF, NPS, and detectability indices for each diameter section of the phantom. Detectability indices were used to evaluate the relationship between AEC setting, patient size, and image quality. The magnitude of the power of a best fit exponential curve to the detectability indices and phantom diameter was used as a measure of AEC strength. Results were compared within/across scanner models, and as baseline values for comparison with future system performance testing.Results:For each scanner model, the percent difference in expected image quality and AEC setting was under 3%(+/−2%). The average decrease in detectability between the small and large diameter phantom sections for the Siemens Flash, GE CT750, and GE VCT was 99%(+/−10%), 42%(+/−25%), and 33%(+/−41%), respectively. The value signifying AEC strength was 0.051(+/−13%), 0.019(+/−18%), and 0.018(+/−26%), for the Siemens Flash, GE CT750, and GE VCT models, respectively.Conclusion:This study demonstrated a practical approach to test the AEC performance of clinical CT systems at a large academic medical center. The quantification and evaluation of AEC performance should be included in acceptance testing and in annual physics testing of clinical CT systems.

Self-assessment analysis of health and physical activity level of military personnel

Sport and physical activity is important and compulsory for military staff. They determine the execution of service duties and tasks. Respondents with low level of physical activity have difficulties achieving required fitness level and pass the annual physical tests. Staff officers aged 28 to 40 years completed questionnaires in 2009 (n=22), 2010 (n=30) and 2012 (n=39). Each questionnaire included twenty one questions which were then evaluated in points. The answers allowed us to collect information regarding their physical activity during service hours as well as after the working day. Questionnaires included also issues on harmful habits – sleep duration, smoking and use of alcohol; self-esteem of body mass as well. The respondents were divided into four groups according to the level of physical activity: low, moderate, good, high. The percentage of respondents with a high and good level of physical activity has increased from 22.7% to 68.9% during the analysed time period. Morning exercises and hardening (fitness) procedures were not popular for military personnel. However, physical activities during the working hours have slightly increased: 31.8%, 43.3% and 48.9.3% respectively. In study years, it was found that respondents try to follow healthy eating habits and sleep regime. There is a slight decrease of respondents with obese and there is a slight increase of 22.7% to 27.6% of the respondents who are regular smokers .

Does Psychological Stress Improve Physical Performance?

The purpose of this study is to determine whether psychological stress enhances physical performance and how personality traits affect it. The annual physical test was chosen as the psychological stressor. Ninety three students ran 50 meters as part of the test and one week after that as a control. The pulse rate and time were measured and pulse rate was used as an indicator of psychological stress. All students took the anxiety-trait scale test of the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. The pulse rate was higher and the time record was better in the annual physical test compared with that of control. When we categorized the subjects by the anxiety-trait scale test, only the high anxiety-trait students could run faster when faced with higher stress. In conclusion, psychological stress can enhance the physical performance of certain students. It is possible that psychological stress and personality traits interact and both of them affect physical performance.