Entire Regions Of Interest Research Articles

A method for tumor dosimetry based on hybrid planar‐SPECT/CT images and semiautomatic segmentation

A hybrid planar-SPECT/CT method for tumor dosimetry in Lu-DOTATATE therapy, applicable to datasets consisting of multiple conjugate-view images and one SPECT/CT, is developed and evaluated. The imaging protocol includes conjugate-view imaging at 1, 24, 96, and 168 h post infusion (p.i.) and a SPECT/CT acquisition 24 h p.i. The dosimetry method uses the planar images to estimate the shape of the time-activity concentration curve, which is then rescaled to absolute units using the SPECT-derived activity concentration. The resulting time-integrated activity concentration coefficient (TIACC) is used to calculate the tumor-absorbed dose. Semiautomatic segmentation techniques are applied for tumor delineation in both planar and SPECT images, where the planar image segmentation is accomplished using an active-rays-based technique. The selection of tumors is done by visual inspection of planar and SPECT images and applying a set of criteria concerning the tumor visibility and possible interference from superimposed activity uptakes in the planar images. Five different strategies for determining values from planar regions of interest (ROIs), based on entire or partial ROIs, and with and without background correction, are evaluated. Evaluation is performed against a SPECT/CT-based method on data from six patients where sequential conjugate-view and SPECT/CT imaging have been performed in parallel and against ground truths in Monte Carlo simulated images. The patient data are also used to evaluate the interoperator variability and to assess the validity of the developed criteria for tumor selection. For patient images, the hybrid method produces TIACCs that are on average 6% below those of the SPECT/CT only method, with standard deviations for the relative TIACC differences of 8%-11%. Simulations show that the hybrid and SPECT-based methods estimate the TIACCs to within approximately 10% for tumors larger than around 10 ml, while for smaller tumors, all methods underestimate the TIACCs due to underestimations of the activity concentrations in the SPECT images. The planar image segmentation has a low operator dependence, with a median Dice similarity coefficient of 0.97 between operators. The adopted criteria for tumor selection manage to discriminate the tumors for which the absorbed-dose deviations between the hybrid and SPECT methods are the highest. The hybrid method is found suitable for studies of tumor-absorbed doses in radionuclide therapy, provided that selection criteria regarding the visibility and overlapping activities in the planar images are applied.

A framework for providing real-time feedback of environmental noise levels over large areas

Environmental noise can cause sleep disturbance, annoyance, complaints, and quite possibly adverse health effects. This is true for continuous noise sources such as steady road traffic noise, impulsive noise sources such as blasts or sonic booms, or sources that fall in-between such as intermittent train and aircraft noise. One way to manage environmental noise is to use noise-monitoring technology to provide both the noise-producers and noise-experiencers feedback on the actual noise environment. Traditional noise-monitoring systems, however, only provide this information at a few locations resulting in an incomplete picture of the noise environment over the entire regions of interest. In this paper, we discuss a framework for providing real-time feedback of the noise environment over a large area (e.g., 100 km2). We show all the steps that are needed to convert the raw noise-monitor data into noise maps and noise impact maps to help manage environmental noise. We discuss the complexity of the problem and present several different ways to visualize the data.

SU‐D‐202‐03: Statistical Segmentation On Quantitative CT for Assessing Spatial Tumor Response During Radiation Therapy Delivery

Purpose:Develop a method to segment regions of interest (ROIs) in tumor with statistically similar Hounsfield unit (HU) values and/or HU changes during chemoradiation therapy (CRT) delivery, to assess spatial tumor treatment response based on daily CTs during CRT delivery.Methods:Generate a three region map of ROIs with differential HUs, by sampling neighboring voxels around a selected voxel and comparing to the mean of the entire ROI using a t‐test. The cumulative distribution function, P, is calculated from the t‐test. The P value is assigned to be the value at the selected voxel, and this is repeated over all voxels in the initial ROI. Three regions are defined as: (1‐P) < 0.00001 (mid region), and 0.00001 < (1‐P) (mean greater than baseline and mean lower than baseline). The test is then expanded to compare daily CT sets acquired during routine CT‐guided RT delivery using a CT‐on‐rails. The first fraction CT is used as the baseline for comparison. We tested 15 pancreatic head tumor cases undergoing CRT, to identify the ROIs and changes corresponding to normal, fibrotic, and tumor tissue. The obtained ROIs were compared with MRI‐ADC maps acquired pre‐ and post‐CRT.Results:The ROIs in 13 out of 15 patients’ first fraction CTs and pre‐CRT MRIs matched the general region and slices covered, as well as in 6 out of the 9 patients with post‐CRT MRIs. The high HU region designated by the t‐test was seen to correlate with the tumor region in MR, and these ROIs are positioned within the same region over the course of treatment. In patients with poorly delineated tumors in MR, the t‐test was inconclusive.Conclusion:The proposed statistical segmentation technique shows the potential to identify regions in tumor with differential HUs and HU changes during CRT delivery for patients with pancreas head cancer.

Loop-based multiple heart-cutting two-dimensional liquid chromatography for target analysis in complex matrices.

Loop-based multiple heart-cutting (MHC) two-dimensional liquid chromatography (2D-LC) is presented as a solution to quantify target components in complex matrices, such as additives in polymers, at very high chromatographic resolution. The determination of hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD) in polystyrene (PS) is described. One dimensional ((1)D) LC analysis with UV detection did not allow quantitation of the main isomers of HBCD due to peak overlap with polymer components. MHC 2D-LC analysis provided the separation power, accuracy, and repeatability needed for quantitative analysis of the additives of interest. Heart-cuts from peaks of the (1)D-chromatogram or entire regions of interest are sampled into loops, where they remain parked until their sequential reinjection onto the second dimension ((2)D) column. A column set consisting of phenyl ((1)D) and C18 ((2)D) stationary phases gave baseline separation in (2)D between HBCD and PS background. Linearity for spiked polymer samples was achieved over a range of 0.02-1.00 wt % HBCD relative to the amount of polymer. The limit of quantitation was estimated at 0.01 wt % HBCD in PS. A peak area RSD of 0.7% obtained for ten replicates of a real sample demonstrated excellent repeatability of the analysis. MHC 2D-LC is an elegant solution for quantitative analyses of difficult-to-separate samples when conventional (1)D separation fails.

A Multiatlas Segmentation Using Graph Cuts with Applications to Liver Segmentation in CT Scans

An atlas-based segmentation approach is presented that combines low-level operations, an affine probabilistic atlas, and a multiatlas-based segmentation. The proposed combination provides highly accurate segmentation due to registrations and atlas selections based on the regions of interest (ROIs) and coarse segmentations. Our approach shares the following common elements between the probabilistic atlas and multiatlas segmentation: (a) the spatial normalisation and (b) the segmentation method, which is based on minimising a discrete energy function using graph cuts. The method is evaluated for the segmentation of the liver in computed tomography (CT) images. Low-level operations define a ROI around the liver from an abdominal CT. We generate a probabilistic atlas using an affine registration based on geometry moments from manually labelled data. Next, a coarse segmentation of the liver is obtained from the probabilistic atlas with low computational effort. Then, a multiatlas segmentation approach improves the accuracy of the segmentation. Both the atlas selections and the nonrigid registrations of the multiatlas approach use a binary mask defined by coarse segmentation. We experimentally demonstrate that this approach performs better than atlas selections and nonrigid registrations in the entire ROI. The segmentation results are comparable to those obtained by human experts and to other recently published results.

Dynamic contrast-enhanced CT in suspected lung cancer: quantitative results

To examine whether dynamic contrast-enhanced CT (DCE-CT) could be used to characterise and safely distinguish between malignant and benign lung tumours in patients with suspected lung cancer. Using a quantitative approach to DCE-CT, two separate sets of regions of interest (ROIs) in tissues were placed in each tumour: large ROIs over the entire tumour and small ROIs over the maximally perfused parts of the tumour. Using mathematical modelling techniques and dedicated perfusion software, this yielded a plethora of results. First, because of their non-normal distribution, DCE-CT measurements must be analysed using log scale data transformation. Second, there were highly significant differences between large ROI and small ROI measurements (p<0.001). Thus, the ROI method used in a given study should always be specified in advance. Third, neither quantitative parameters (blood flow and blood volume) nor semi-quantitative parameters (peak enhancement) could be used to distinguish between malignant and benign tumours. This was irrespective of the method of quantification used for large ROIs (0.13<p<0.76) and small ROIs (0.084<p<0.31). Fourth, although there were no indications of systematic reproducibility bias, the 95% limits of agreement were so broad that the risk of disagreement between the measurements could affect the clinical use of the measurements. This lack of reproducibility should be addressed. CONCLUSION AND ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE: A quantitative approach to DCE-CT is not a clinically usable method for characterising lung tumours.

Quantitative short echo time 1H MRSI of the peripheral edematous region of human brain tumors in the differentiation between glioblastoma, metastasis, and meningioma

To assess metabolite levels in peritumoral edematous (PO) and surrounding apparently normal (SAN) brain regions of glioblastoma, metastasis, and meningioma in humans with (1)H-MRSI to find biomarkers that can discriminate between tumors and characterize infiltrative tumor growth. Magnetic resonance (MR) spectra (semi-LASER MRSI, 30 msec echo time, 3T) were selected from regions of interest (ROIs) under MRI guidance, and after quality control of MR spectra. Statistical testing between patient groups was performed for mean metabolite ratios of an entire ROI and for the highest value within that ROI. The highest ratios of the level of choline compounds and the sum of myo-inositol and glycine over N-acetylaspartate and creatine compounds were significantly increased in PO regions of glioblastoma versus that of metastasis and meningioma. In the SAN region of glioblastoma some of these ratios were increased. Differences were less prominent for metabolite levels averaged over entire ROIs. Specific metabolite ratios in PO and SAN regions can be used to discriminate glioblastoma from metastasis and meningioma. An analysis of these ratios averaged over entire ROIs and those with most abnormal values indicates that infiltrative tumor growth in glioblastoma is inhomogeneous and extends into the SAN region.

Role of very high order and degree B0 shimming for spectroscopic imaging of the human brain at 7 tesla

With the advent of ultrahigh field systems (7 T), significant improvements in spectroscopic imaging (SI) studies of the human brain have been anticipated. These gains are dependent upon the achievable B0 homogeneity, both globally (σB0Global, over the entire regions of interest or slice) and locally (σB0Global, influencing the linewidth of individual SI voxels within the regions of interest). Typically the B0 homogeneity is adjusted using shim coils with spatial distributions modeled on spherical harmonics which can be characterized by a degree (radial dependence) and order (azimuthal symmetry). However, the role of very high order and degree shimming (e.g., 3rd and 4th degree) in MRSI studies has been controversial. Measurements of σB0Global and σB0Local were determined from B0 field maps of 64×64 resolution. In a 10 mm thick slice taken through the region of the subcortical nuclei, we find that in comparison to 1st-2nd degree shims, use of 1st-3rd and 1st-4th degree shims reduces σB0Global by 29% and 55%, respectively. Using a SI voxel size of ∼1cc with an estimate of σB0Local from 3×3×3 B0 map pixels in this subcortical region, the number of pixels with σB0Local of less than 5 Hz increased from 24 to 59% with 1st-3rd and 1st-4th over 1st-2nd degree shims, respectively.

Quantitative assessment of skeletal muscle activation using muscle functional MRI

The purpose of the present study is to determine whether muscle functional MRI (mfMRI) can be used to obtain three-dimensional (3-D) images useful for evaluating muscle activity, and if so, to measure the distribution of muscle activity within a medial gastrocnemius (MG) muscle. Seven men performed 5 sets of 10 repetitions of a calf-raise exercise with additional 15% of body-weight load. Magnetic resonance images were obtained before and immediately after the exercise. To threshold images, only those pixels showing transverse relaxation time (T2) greater than the mean+1 S.D. of the entire regions of interest (ROIs) in the preexercise image and T2 lower than the mean+1 S.D. of the entire ROIs in the postexercise image were identified. The survived pixels showing T2 are defined as active muscle. Those thresholded images were 3-D reconstructed, and this was used to determine area of active muscle along transverse, longitudinal and vertical axes. At the exercise level used in the present study, the percentage volume of activated muscle in the MG was 62.8+/-4.5%. There was a significant correlation between percentage volume of activated muscle and integrated electromyography (r=.78, P<.05). Percentage areas of activated muscle were significantly larger in the medial than in the lateral region, in the anterior than in the posterior region and in the distal than in the proximal region (P<.05). These results suggest that mfMRI can be used to evaluate the muscle activity and to determine intramuscular variations of activity within skeletal muscle.

Computerized characterization of masses on mammograms: the rubber band straightening transform and texture analysis.

A new rubber band straightening transform (RBST) is introduced for characterization of mammographic masses as malignant or benign. The RBST transforms a band of pixels surrounding a segmented mass onto the Cartesian plane (the RBST image). The border of a mammographic mass appears approximately as a horizontal line, and possible speculations resemble vertical lines in the RBST image. In this study, the effectiveness of a set of directional textures extracted from the images before the RBST. A database of 168 mammograms containing biopsy-proven malignant and benign breast masses was digitized at a pixel size of 100 microns x 100 microns. Regions of interest (ROIs) containing the biopsied mass were extracted from each mammogram by an experienced radiologist. A clustering algorithm was employed for automated segmentation of each ROI into a mass object and background tissue. Texture features extracted from spatial gray-level dependence matrices and run-length statistics matrices were evaluated for three different regions and representations: (i) the entire ROI; (ii) a band of pixels surrounding the segmented mass object in the ROI; and (iii) the RBST image. Linear discriminant analysis was used for classification, and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to evaluate the classification accuracy. Using the ROC curves as the performance measure, features extracted from the RBST images were found to be significantly more effective than those extracted from the original images. Features extracted from the RBST images yielded an area (Az) of 0.94 under the ROC curve for classification of mammographic masses as malignant and benign.

816 Heterogeneity of rat clathrin assembly protein 3 (AP-3) molecules

The purpose of the present study is to determine whether muscle functional MRI (mfMRI) can be used to obtain three-dimensional (3-D) images useful for evaluating muscle activity, and if so, to measure the distribution of muscle activity within a medial gastrocnemius (MG) muscle. Seven men performed 5 sets of 10 repetitions of a calf-raise exercise with additional 15% of body-weight load. Magnetic resonance images were obtained before and immediately after the exercise. To threshold images, only those pixels showing transverse relaxation time (T2) greater than the mean+1 S.D. of the entire regions of interest (ROIs) in the preexercise image and T2 lower than the mean+1 S.D. of the entire ROIs in the postexercise image were identified. The survived pixels showing T2 are defined as active muscle. Those thresholded images were 3-D reconstructed, and this was used to determine area of active muscle along transverse, longitudinal and vertical axes. At the exercise level used in the present study, the percentage volume of activated muscle in the MG was 62.8±4.5%. There was a significant correlation between percentage volume of activated muscle and integrated electromyography (r=.78, P<.05). Percentage areas of activated muscle were significantly larger in the medial than in the lateral region, in the anterior than in the posterior region and in the distal than in the proximal region (P<.05). These results suggest that mfMRI can be used to evaluate the muscle activity and to determine intramuscular variations of activity within skeletal muscle.

The effect of increasing gap width on localized densitometric changes within tibial ostectomies in a canine model.

Dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) was used to quantitate the localized densitometric changes that occur early (0-16 weeks) in a tibial ostectomy model of three different gap widths in 15 dogs. Dogs were divided into three equal groups. A 5-mm (group 1), 15-mm (group 2), or 25-mm (group 3) unilateral tibial ostectomy was performed and stabilized with a unilateral external skeletal fixator in each dog. DXA of the gap tissue was performed at 0, 14, 30, 60, 90, and 120 days after surgery. Regions of interest (ROIs) included the entire gap (groups 1, 2, 3) and ROIs within the gap a defined distance from the proximal or distal cortical bone ends: 0-2.5 mm (groups 1, 2, 3); 2.5-5.0 mm (groups 2, 3), 5.0-7.5 mm (groups 2, 3), 7.5-10.0 mm (group 3), and 10.0-12.5 mm (group 3). Bone mineral density (BMD) significantly changed over time in all three groups (P < 0.0001). The BMD of the 5-mm gap increased over the 4-month study period and reached normal middiaphysial tibial BMD by 90 days after surgery. The BMD of the 15-mm gap also increased after surgery but reached a plateau at a BMD of approximately 0.45 g/cm2 (48% of middiaphyseal BMD) at 60 days after surgery. The BMD of the 25-mm gap increased to a small extent during the first 30 days after surgery and then gradually decreased during the study period. Overall, the 5-mm gap had the highest BMD, followed by the 15-mm gap and the 25-mm gap (P < 0.0001).

Estimation of right ventricular pressure by 201 T1 scintigraphy in paediatric cardiac disease

To estimate right ventricular overload in paediatric cardiac disease, 201Tl scintigraphy was used to quantify right ventricular uptake. Six methods for calculating the 201Tl right-to-left ventricular uptake ratio (TRL) were compared, based on the location of regions of interest (ROIs), use of total count or mean count density, and the ROI-based method or profile method. When the TRL was compared with the right-to-left ventricular peak systolic pressure ratio (RVP/LVP), the mean count density method using entire right and left ventricular ROIs seemed to be appropriate, considering its simplicity, reproducibility and regression line. The linear regression line was RVP/LVP = 1.15 x TRL - 0.13 (n = 15, P = -0.0001), and RVP(mm Hg) = 162 x TRL - 33 (n = 15, P = 0.0001). In four patients with pulmonary stenosis, the changes of TRL were in good agreement with the right ventricular pressure changes after percutaneous balloon valvuloplasty. Thus, evaluation of thallium scintigraphy using this quantitative method can be a simple and effective way to evaluate patients with right ventricular pressure overloading.