CHOICE OF A RECONSTRUCTION METHOD FOR POSITRON-EMISSION ECG-GATED STUDIES AND ITS EFFECT ON CALCULATED VOLUMETRIC PARAMETERS OF THE LEFT VENTRICULAR FUNCTION AND VISUAL IMAGE QUALITY

Abstract

Ischemic heart disease is one of the leading causes of mortality in the Russian Federation. Timely diagnosis of this condition allows you to determine the optimal treatment tactics. Positron emission tomography with 18-fluorodeoxyglucose is a method for verifying viable cardiac tissue in patients with myocardial infarction. The methods used for the reconstruction of positron emission tomograms can affect the quantitative indicators of the contractile function of the myocardium. Materials and methods. The study retrospectively included 12 patients who underwent PET/CT with 18-fluorodeoxyglucose, the results of which were reconstructed using filtered back projection methods and iterative reconstruction, with ECG synchronization and division of ECG R-R intervals into 8, 10 and 16 frames. The obtained images were evaluated visually by two radiologists, and the quantitative parameters characterizing the contractile function of the left ventricular myocardium were compared in pairs. Results. There were no significant differences in the assessment of quantitative indicators such as end-systolic and diastolic volumes, stroke volume and ejection fraction. However, the iterative reconstruction results show less data scatter than the filtered back projection reconstruction method. In visual analysis, the best quality of reconstructions by iterative methods is noted. Conclusions. Thus, the recommended method for both visual analysis and quantification is iterative reconstruction, regardless of the number of timing windows used. A spread in the number of used reconstructed fragments of the cardiac cycle in the range of 8-16, commonly used in clinical practice, can be recommended.