Extended acquisition for minimizing attenuation artifact in SPECT cardiac perfusion imaging

Artifacts due to attenuation can complicate the interpretation of SPECT cardiac perfusion images, especially when the attenuated region corresponds to that of a coronary vascular distribution. Since methods of correction are limited, some patients undergo coronary angiography unnecessarily. Acquisition using a three-detector camera provides more data that can serve to minimize the effects of localized attenuation if incorporated into the final reconstruction set. In this article, a practical approach for interpreting SPECT cardiac perfusion images is outlined, demonstrating with an illustrative case how this approach can be clinically helpful.