[Evaluation of reconstruction arc in myocardial SPECT imaging using a cardiac phantom--comparison between 360 degrees...

In order to investigate the effect of reconstruction arc on myocardial SPECT images, a series of phantom studies was performed with and without plastic chambers simulating perfusion defects using 201Tl and 99mTc. Coefficient of variations (CV) of the counts among the ROIs and defect contrast were evaluated in 360 degrees and 180 degrees images reconstructed from the same 360 degrees projection data. Reconstruction processes were identical for all images. In the absence of defects, the CV of the counts were approximately the same in 360 degrees and 180 degrees images. The CV of the counts in the 360 degrees 201Tl image, among 4 defects located on the anterior, lateral, inferoposterior, and septal walls, was superior to those in the 180 degrees images. In contrast, in the 99mTc images, the CV of the counts among the 4 defects in the 180 degrees image was superior to those of the 360 degrees image. The defect contrast was changed both by the location of the defect and by the reconstruction arc (201Tl, 99mTc). The defect contrast of the 180 degrees images, in both 201Tl and 99mTc experiments, was closer to the true contrast value as calculated by the count ratio between myocardium and defect. Although the defect contrast in the anterior, lateral and septal walls was more emphasized in the 180 degrees images, the defect contrast in the inferoposterior wall was less emphasized in the 180 degrees images compared to the 360 degrees (201Tl, 99mTc).