Impact of Smart Neuro Attenuation Correlation on the Quality and Standardized Uptake Value of Brain PET Imaging / 中国医学影像学杂志

ABSTRACT

PurposeSmart neuro attenuation correlation (SNAC) is a new method of calculated attention correction. This paper aims to evaluate the impact of SNAC on the quality and standardized uptake value of brain imaging with PET/CT.Materials and Methods Fifty-eight patients who underwent systematic scan with18F-FDG PET/CT were analyzed retrospectively. CT attenuation correlation (CTAC) and SNAC brain PET images were reconstructed respectively. All images were analyzed by visual assessment and Scenium software and the results of the two methods were compared with regard to image contrast, homogeneity and mean SUV at different cerebral regions. Moreover, the correlation of the mean SUV of the two methods was further analyzed.Results There was no significant visual difference of contrast and uniformity between SNAC and CTAC. The Scenium analysis shows that the contrast of SNAC images were slightly higher than that of CTAC, but the difference were not statistically significant (4.19±1.11vs. 4.08±1.03,t=0.764,P>0.05). The uniformity of SNAC images were slightly lower than that of CTAC (1.00vs. 0.83). The mean SUV at various brain regions measured by SNAC was greater than that by CTAC, but both were significantly correlated (r=0.978,P<0.01), and the linear regression analysis also demonstrated that the results were consistent (R2=0.959). Compared with that measured by CTAC, the average percentage difference of SUV measured by SNAC was 8.45±4.71, but it varied greatly at 10 brain regions (-8.56-27.93). The analysis of variance presented significant differences in the average percentage difference of SUV at different brain regions (F=119.084,P<0.01), while the average percentage difference at the outer slices was greater than that at the central slices. Conclusion No significant difference exists in image quality between SNAC and CTAC. Although the mean SUV at different brain regions measured by SNAC may increase by various degrees, it is significantly associated with the results measured by CTAC. Moreover, SNAC simplifies the process of examination and reduces radiation dose, which is beneficial to patients as a qualitative method.