Siemens is unveiling a new SPECT/CT (single-photon emission computed tomography/computed tomography) system in the coming days at the annual meeting of the Society of Nuclear Medicine & Molecular Imaging in Denver, Colorado. The Symbia Intevo Bold SPECT/CT can be used in either modality, allowing a hospital to offer SPECT and CT imaging on a single machine. This creates options such as using the system as a primary or backup CT scanner and helping to faster process patients that need both SPECT and CT imaging.
Because the scanner may be used as a primary CT in many clinics, Siemens has chosen to outfit it with its more advanced CT technologies. These includes the SAFIRE (Sinogram Affirmed Iterative Reconstruction) algorithm that produces high quality images at a reduced radiation dose and the iMAR (Iterative Metal Artifact Reduction) algorithm that minimizes the effect of metal implants on the rendered image. The system can work as a single-source dual-energy scanner that creates two spiral CT scans at different energy levels, combining the two to improve image quality.
Additionally, iMAR can be utilized to take a CT scan and then applied to improve the quality of a subsequent SPECT scan. There is also something called IVR (interleaved volume reconstruction), an option that, according to Siemens “reconstructs overlapping CT images up to 32 slices to extract the maximum amount of diagnostic information from measured data, enabling evaluation of small structures such as lesions or fractures. IVR improves spatial resolution in the z-direction of all CT scans, regardless of pitch.”
Via: Siemens…