High-resolution Anthropomorphic Phantom Research Articles

Development of a simple numerical model for trabecular bone structures.

Advances in additive manufacturing processes are enabling the fabrication of surrogate bone structures for applications including use in high-resolution anthropomorphic phantoms. In this research, a simple numerical model is proposed that enables the generation of microarchitecture with similar statistical distribution to trabecular bone. A human humerus, radius, ulna, and several vertebrae were scanned on the Imaging and Medical beamline at the Australian Synchrotron and the proposed numerical model was developed through the definition of two complex functions that encode the trabecular thickness and position-dependant spacing to generate volumetric surrogate trabecular structures. The structures reproduced those observed at 19 separate axial locations through the experimental bone volumes. The applicability of the model when incorporating a two-material approximation to absorption- and phase-contrast CT was also investigated through simulation. The synthetic structures, when compared with the real trabecular microarchitecture, yielded an average mean thickness error of 2μm, and a mean difference in standard deviation of 33μm for the humerus, 24μm for the ulna and radius, and 15μm for the vertebrae. Simulated absorption- and propagation-based phase contrast CT projection data were generated and reconstructed using the derived mathematical simplifications from the two-material approximation, and the phase-contrast effects were successfully demonstrated. The presented model reproduced trabecular distributions that could be used to generate phantoms for quality assurance and validation processes. The implication of utilizing a two-material approximation results in simplification of the additive manufacturing process and the generation of synthetic data that could be used for training of machine learning applications.

Analytical reconstructions of intensity modulated x-ray phase-contrast imaging of human scale phantoms.

This paper presents analytical approach to modeling of a full planar and volumetric acquisition system with image reconstructions originated from partial illumination x-ray phase-contrast imaging at a human scale using graphics processor units. The model is based on x-ray tracing and wave optics methods to develop a numerical framework for predicting the performance of a preclinical phase-contrast imaging system of a human-scaled phantom. In this study, experimental images of simple numerical phantoms and high resolution anthropomorphic phantoms of head and thorax based on non-uniform rational b-spline shapes (NURBS) prove the correctness of the model. Presented results can be used to simulate the performance of partial illumination x-ray phase-contrast imaging system on various preclinical applications.

Evaluation of a new methodology for paediatric dosimetry: optimization of SPECT protocols, based on Monte Carlo simulations with high-resolution anthropomorphic phantoms

Evaluation of a new methodology for paediatric dosimetry: optimization of SPECT protocols, based on Monte Carlo simulations with high-resolution anthropomorphic phantoms

Neutron-fluence-to-dose conversion coefficients in an anthropomorphic phantom

A set of fluence-to-effective-dose conversion coefficients has been calculated for neutrons with energies <20 MeV using a high-resolution anthropomorphic phantom (Zubal model) and the MCNPX code. The calculation used 13 monodirectional monoenergetic neutron beams in the energy range 10(-9) to 20 MeV, under three different source irradiation configurations: anterior-posterior, posterior-anterior and left lateral. Dose calculations were performed for 18 selected organs of the body, for which the International Commission on Radiological Protection and the International Commission on Radiological Units and Measurements have set tissue weighting factors for the determination of the effective dose. Another set of neutron-fluence-to-effective-dose conversion coefficients was also calculated with the proposed modification wR from ICRP Publication 92. From comparison between the dose results calculated and the data reported for the MIRD and VIPMAN models, it can be concluded that, although some discrepancies exist between the Zubal model and the two other models, there is good agreement in the left lateral irradiation geometry.