title: PET imaging using a triple-head gamma camera.
abstract: Interest in clinical fluorodeoxyglucose (FDG) imaging with multiple-head gamma cameras is growing. To improve sensitivity, triple-head coincidence imaging has been proposed. We report our initial experiences with a triple-head coincidence gamma camera with 19 mm sodium iodide crystal thickness. Several positron emission tomography-image quality parameters were evaluated using a Carlson and line source phantom. The system sensitivity with two-dimensional axial shields was 830 cps kBq-1 ml-1 and maximum noise equivalent count rate 1900 cps for an 18F-activity of 50 MBq. The imaging resolution was in central axial 7.0 mm and in central transaxial 7.6 mm, respectively. The average scatter fraction in scattered media was 29%. Clinical brain, heart and whole body images studies with [18F]FDG were acquired and they show good correlation with the phantom image quality. As a conclusion, triple-head coincidence gamma camera provides relatively high-count rate imaging with good contrast and resolution.
authors.affiliation: Department of Clinical Physiology and Nuclear Medicine, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio, Finland. jkuikka@uku.fi
authors.forename: J T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Kuikka
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sohlberg
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Husso-Saastamoinen
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001932:Brain Neoplasms / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D005260:Female; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009837:Oligodendroglioma / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D012507:Sarcoidosis / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014055:Tomography, Emission-Computed / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D019275:Radiopharmaceuticals; D019788:Fluorodeoxyglucose F18