Radiography最新文献

{"title":"A clinical audit of the utility of abdominal ultrasonography in the diagnosis of fungal infections in febrile neutropaenic paediatric oncology patients.","authors":"H Sungkana, A A Fox, C Edwards, T Reddan","doi":"10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.014","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.014","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Invasive fungal infections (IFI) in paediatric oncology patients are associated with significant morbidity and mortality. Abdominal ultrasonography is widely used for diagnosis, but its utility remains unclear.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>We conducted a retrospective cohort study of paediatric oncology patients who were febrile and neutropaenic at Queensland Children's Hospital, Australia, from January 2018 to December 2019. We reviewed abdominal ultrasound (US) examinations requested for suspected IFI, analysing diagnostic yield and associations with clinical variables.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>There were 94 patients included, 21 of whom did not survive their underlying condition, seven (7.4 %) showed evidence of IFI on US. Infections did not demonstrate a predilection for a particular abdominal organ. Fourteen patients had a positive blood culture, with only three confirmed fungal pathogens. Chest computed tomography, performed in 41 of cases had findings suspicious for IFI in 52.3 % of these examinations.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Abdominal ultrasonography has a low diagnostic yield (7.4 %) for new IFI in paediatric oncology patients. However, given the mortality rate in this population, its use may be justified for monitoring known infections and as part of a comprehensive diagnostic approach.</p><p><strong>Implications for practice: </strong>US is an effective method of screening for abdominal IFI in paediatric oncology patients who are febrile and neutropaenic. The low diagnostic yield is outweighed by the morbidity and mortality of IFI in this vulnerable patient cohort.</p>","PeriodicalId":47416,"journal":{"name":"Radiography","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143075891","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Potential benefits of social media in educating healthcare professionals and students on medical imaging with ionizing radiation: A scoping review.","authors":"L Vieira, C Kang, M Martins, A Grilo","doi":"10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.008","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Advancements in medical imaging with ionizing radiation have significantly transformed the field and enhanced the education and training of medical professionals. A notable development in this educational landscape is the use of social media, which engages millions of users worldwide. This scoping review aims to explore the potential of social media as an educational tool for healthcare professionals and students in medical imaging with ionizing radiation, highlighting its benefits and disadvantages.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>In March 2024, research was conducted on three databases: PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. The research equation combined the terms \"Social Media,\" \"Education,\" and \"Medical Imaging.\" Data extraction was based on PRISMA-ScR guidelines for scoping reviews.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Seventeen articles published between 2017 and 2023 were included in this review, all of which were descriptive cross-sectional studies and primarily focused on popular platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube. The key advantages of social media use for medical imaging education were accessibility, ease of use, and broad reach, while the main limitation was the potential for misinformation.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>While there is clear potential to integrate social media into medical imaging education, more must be done to understand their effectiveness. This ongoing process requires the active engagement of all stakeholders. While promising, further research is needed to validate social media as an educational tool.</p><p><strong>Implications for practice: </strong>Successfully integrating social media into medical imaging education, thus enhancing learning, communication, and collaboration between healthcare professionals, requires a strong commitment to managing accurate and reliable content sources on social media.</p>","PeriodicalId":47416,"journal":{"name":"Radiography","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143068814","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"The use of artificial intelligence to aid the diagnosis of lung cancer - A retrospective-cohort study.","authors":"J R Tugwell-Allsup, B W Owen, R Hibbs, A England","doi":"10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.011","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.011","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>AI software in the form of deep learning-based automatic detection (DLAD) algorithms for chest X-ray (CXR) interpretation have shown success in early detection of lung cancer (LC), however, there remains uncertainty related to clinical validation.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>CXRs and their corresponding chest-CT scans were retrospectively collated from a single institution between January 2019-2020. A commercially available AI software was used to evaluate 320 CXRs (<6 years prior-to-diagnosis) from 105 positive LC patients and 103 negative controls. Clinical reports were extracted and coded to correlate against AI findings.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Of 105 LC patients, (57[55 %] men, median [IQR] age 73[68-83] years), clinical reports identified LC in 64 (61 %) whereas AI identified LC in 95 (90 %). AI diagnostic (image-level) and prognostic (patient-level) sensitivities were 57.6 % and 90.0 %, (81 % in correct location), respectively. On CXRs performed >12 months prior to LC diagnosis, the AI detected nodules in 24(23 %) cases of which 22/24 had negative clinical reports for lung nodule/mass. The potential median reduction in time-to-diagnosis for cases where AI identified nodule(s) on previous CXR, but clinical reports negative, was 193[IQR 42-598] days. Of the 103 'negative' controls (48[47 %] men, median [IQR] age 69[61-77] years) 20 patients had a nodule abnormality score above the threshold, generating a false-positive rate of 19 %.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>The AI software showed excellent performance in detecting LCs that initially went undetected on CXR. The algorithm has potential to increase LC detection rates and reduce time-to-diagnosis. Using the AI, in conjunction with a trained observer, could increase reporting accuracy and potentially improve clinical outcomes.</p><p><strong>Implications for practice: </strong>This study demonstrated the benefits and pitfalls associated with using AI in a clinical setting. It provides further evidence for utilising decision-support aids within clinical practice.</p>","PeriodicalId":47416,"journal":{"name":"Radiography","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-30","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143075900","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"An overview of radiography research and publication productivity in Denmark.","authors":"J Jensen, P B Andersen, F Skjøth, M R V Pedersen","doi":"10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.012","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.012","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Objectives: </strong>This paper presents the progress of publications with Danish radiographers in scientific journals. The objective was to gain an overview of research in radiography in Denmark by exploring how publications with radiographer involvement have evolved over time in Denmark. We conducted a literature search on February 20th 2024 to identify papers authored or co-authored by Danish radiographers over the past thirteen years. The papers were screened by two authors (JJ & MRVP) using the online tool Covidence. All identified authors affiliated to a Danish Department of Radiology were searched in the Danish healthcare authorization register. Articles with authors, who were registered as a radiographer, were included in the study. Information on publication year, title, journal, and impact factor, citations, and nationality of co-authors were extracted.</p><p><strong>Key findings: </strong>In total, 243 paper who had one or more Danish radiographers affiliated as an author were included encompassing 97 different Danish radiographers. The majority of the radiographers, 89, had published between 1 and 10 articles and the remainder 8 authors between 11 and 43 publications. We observed an increase in publications over time, indicating an increasing interest for involvement in research.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>We found that the number of peer-review publications with involvement of at least one radiographer has increased markedly during the last decade although the majority of the publications were made by a small group of radiographers. The radiography research in Denmark is wide-ranging and provides impact within and outside radiology journals.</p><p><strong>Implication for practice: </strong>The study demonstrates that professional development is on the rise in Denmark. However, it also underscores the need for a continued focus on the sustainability of radiographer-led research, as the majority of publications come from the contributions of eight radiographers.</p>","PeriodicalId":47416,"journal":{"name":"Radiography","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143068774","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Exploring the lived experiences of diagnostic radiographers after transitioning to non-emergency imaging settings.","authors":"M Ngo, K Thorburn, A Naama, E Skelton","doi":"10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.006","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.006","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>The demand for diagnostic imaging in emergency clinical settings has increased in recent years, placing pressure on the available workforce. However, challenges including staff shortages and inflexible shift patterns may prompt radiographers to leave emergency settings. This study explores the lived experiences of radiographers who have transitioned to non-emergency settings and factors that might influence their decision to return.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A descriptive phenomenological approach was used. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 diagnostic radiographers working in the UK, who had transitioned to non-emergency settings within the last one to five years.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Participants provided insight into (1) the past: reasons for transitioning, (2) the present: current thoughts on wellbeing and professional development, and (3) the future: possibility of returning to the emergency setting. Occupational pressures including excessive workloads, physical exhaustion, and time constraints leading to moral distress, were commonly cited reasons for transitioning to non-emergency setting. Since transitioning, participants reported improvement in their physical and mental well-being, renewed job satisfaction, and enhanced work-life balance. Career advancement opportunities, a better work environment, competitive salaries, and improved mental health support, could encourage a return to the emergency setting.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>This study highlights the valuable learning experiences that emergency settings offer diagnostic radiographers, greatly enhancing their skills and overall competence. However, challenging work conditions can lead to job dissatisfaction and burn out. Instead of leaving the profession altogether, some radiographers found renewed satisfaction by transitioning to non-emergency settings. The majority of participants would consider returning to emergency imaging under the right conditions.</p><p><strong>Implications for practice: </strong>Flexibility regarding work arrangements, career advancement opportunities, competitive salary offers, and improved mental health support through interventions such as debriefing, could help retain radiographers in emergency settings.</p>","PeriodicalId":47416,"journal":{"name":"Radiography","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143068747","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Patient-centred care and technical challenges during polytrauma imaging - Experiences from radiography students.","authors":"A Karera, M Uugwanga, L Kalondo, M Amkongo","doi":"10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.007","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Patient-centred care (PCC) is essential in radiography for polytrauma patients emphasising empathy, clear communication, and patient well-being. Polytrauma patients require tailored imaging approaches, often involving multiple modalities. Managing and handling these patients during imaging are key components of radiography training to develop the necessary competencies. This study aimed to explore the experiences of third- and fourth-year radiography students in applying PCC during the imaging of polytrauma patients.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A qualitative interpretive phenomenological design was employed to capture the in-depth experiences of third and fourth-year radiography students at the University of Namibia. The study utilised purposive sampling to select participants. Data were collected through face-to-face semi-structured interviews, recorded and transcribed for interpretive phenomenological analysis. Trustworthiness was ensured through credibility, dependability, confirmability, and transferability measures.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Twenty-one students (3 males, 18 females; 10 third-year, 11 final-year) participated. Three interpretive themes shaped the findings: Compassionate Patient Care, reflecting students' commitment to balancing technical accuracy with empathy while managing personal fears; Professional Challenges in Polytrauma Imaging, highlighting emotional trauma, technical challenges, and communication barriers as central obstacles; and Professional Transformation Through Collaboration, illustrating how teamwork and reflective practice fostered growth, confidence, and resilience. The findings highlight the human and transformative nature of students' experiences in imaging polytrauma patients.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>This study highlights radiography students' experiences imaging polytrauma patients, emphasizing compassionate care, professional challenges, and collaborative growth. The interplay between technical skills, emotional resilience, and relational competence underscores the need for curricula that address patient-centred care, adaptive problem-solving, and emotional resilience to prepare students for clinical challenges.</p><p><strong>Implications for practice: </strong>Radiography curricula should incorporate emotional resilience training, patient-centred care principles, and adaptive problem-solving to enhance students' preparedness for real-world clinical challenges.</p>","PeriodicalId":47416,"journal":{"name":"Radiography","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-25","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143042090","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Non-medicinal oral contrast in upper abdominal MRI for MR-guided radiotherapy: A scoping review.","authors":"M R Beasley, A M Henry, J Bestall, V P Cosgrove, L J Murray, C Burnett","doi":"10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.003","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Using non-medicinal oral contrast agents may aid safe delivery of magnetic resonance image-guided (MR-guided) radiotherapy by improving the ability to visualise and avoid excessive radiation dose to adjacent bowel/stomach. This scoping review aims to map the literature on non-medicinal oral contrasts used in upper-abdominal diagnostic or therapeutic magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to find potential candidates for employing in MR-guided radiotherapy and identify gaps in knowledge for further study.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A scoping review of non-medicinal oral contrast used in upper-abdominal MRI research followed a pre-defined protocol based on Arksey and O'Malley's framework. Data were charted and reported in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses for Scoping Reviews reporting guidelines.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Forty-seven studies from 1955 screened abstracts were charted. Thirty-one distinct non-medicinal oral contrast were identified, used primarily to enhance tissue visualisation (89 %) or observe motility (11 %) in diagnostic studies. All studies reported to be predominantly quantitative; only 13 % included participant experience via questionnaires and none used qualitative methods. No studies have examined the efficacy of non-medicinal oral contrasts in MR-guided radiotherapy planning or delivery.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Non-medicinal oral contrasts have been extensively investigated in diagnostic MRI to enhance gastrointestinal visualisation and assess motility. However, non-medicinal oral contrasts have not been investigated in the context of radiotherapy planning and treatment. Qualitative evaluation of the patient experience of non-medicinal oral contrasts in magnetic resonance image-guided radiotherapy should be considered alongside studies quantifying the potential clinical benefit.</p><p><strong>Implications for practice: </strong>This review summarises the properties of non-medicinal oral contrasts and identifies critical gaps in the current evidence, particularly the absence of qualitative research in this domain and the unexplored potential for their application in MR-guided radiotherapy planning and delivery.</p>","PeriodicalId":47416,"journal":{"name":"Radiography","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-24","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143042089","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Urgent findings in CT chest examinations: Radiography and medical students' capabilities and learning perspectives - a preliminary study.","authors":"K Lee, P C Brennan, E Lau, M E Suleiman, S Raveendrampillai, K Tapia, A Abubakar, E Ekpo","doi":"10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1016/j.radi.2025.01.002","url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Introduction: </strong>Radiography and medical students (RMS), upon graduation, require capabilities to provide life-saving care through identification and communication of urgent findings on radiological imaging. This preliminary study investigated RMS' ability to identify and categorise urgent findings on CT examinations. It also explored their experiences of image interpretation education.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>A sequential explanatory mixed-methods study was employed. Participants were students who had recently completed Year-4 (radiography/medicine) or Year-2 (medicine-only) from three Australian universities. Urgent finding identification capabilities were assessed via a test-set of 10 CT examinations with a range of findings (normal, abnormal but non-urgent, abnormal but urgent) that was developed on a validated learning and assessment platform. Each case required selection of: normal versus abnormal; where abnormal, finding/s from a pre-defined list; urgency level; self-rated confidence. Learning experiences were then explored via a survey (Likert statements, free-text responses).</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Mean sensitivity, specificity and accuracy (with min‒max ranges), respectively, were: All participants [n = 30] 0.87 (0.60-1.0), 0.63 (0.40-1.0), 0.75 (0.50-1.0); 4th-year radiography [n = 17] 0.89 (0.6-1.0), 0.66 (0.4-1.0), 0.78 (0.60-1.0); 4th-year medicine [n = 8] 0.85 (0.6-1.0), 0.50 (0.4-0.6), 0.68 (0.50-0.8); 2nd-year medicine [n = 5] 0.80 (0.60-1.0), 0.75 (0.75-1.0), 0.78 (0.78-0.78). False positives were highest for cases with non-urgent abnormalities in all groups. Free-text responses revealed students' desire for dedicated urgent finding educational resources with high 'repetitive learning' effects.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>RMS demonstrated considerable performance in identifying urgent abnormalities as a group, but individual capabilities varied from pass-level to perfect. Together, participants demonstrated limited ability to correctly classify non-urgent CT chest abnormalities.</p><p><strong>Implications for practice: </strong>This study highlights opportunities for targeted urgent-finding resource development, focused on improving consistency within cohorts and reducing false positive rates.</p>","PeriodicalId":47416,"journal":{"name":"Radiography","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-16","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"143013942","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Radiographers’ emotional reactions to suspected child abuse","authors":"B. Mussmann ,&nbsp;H. List ,&nbsp;M. Hardy ,&nbsp;Z.S. Al-Rikabi ,&nbsp;H. Vinter ,&nbsp;J. Jensen","doi":"10.1016/j.radi.2024.12.005","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.radi.2024.12.005","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>In cases of suspected physical abuse (SPA) in children, a full skeletal survey is performed. Radiographers performing the survey may experience emotional challenges during the examination. The purpose of the study was to explore the emotional aspects of SPA imaging among radiographers and how they respond to potential challenges.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>Data were collected from 8 paediatric radiographers with responsibility for SPA imaging working in three Danish university hospitals using semi-structured in-depth interviews. Interviews were carried out by an experienced radiographer and a social anthropologist. Recordings were transcribed verbatim and thematic analysis applied.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Most radiographers described skeletal surveys as a potential emotional challenge. Four over-arching themes were identified; Interactions with caregivers and child, Fear of making errors, Dealing with the dead, and Coping with challenges. Except ‘Dealing with the dead’, each theme had several sub-themes.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>Emotional challenges in SPA imaging among radiographers form a complex pattern with interactions with caregivers and the child unfolding in an intense atmosphere where staff are required to regulate feelings. In the highly demanding context of SPA, potential emotionally challenging experiences require both organisational and individual attention.</div></div><div><h3>Implications for practice</h3><div>The results of this study should inspire department managers and paediatric radiographers to establish or maintain space in working patterns for informal collegial debriefing, or more systematic formal debriefing, thereby promoting a culture where emotional impact is recognised and supported.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":47416,"journal":{"name":"Radiography","volume":"31 1","pages":"Pages 306-312"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142865817","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"OA","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Optimizing time-of-flight of PET/CT image quality via penalty β value in Bayesian penalized likelihood reconstruction algorithm","authors":"H. Murat ,&nbsp;M.A.A. Zulkifli ,&nbsp;M.A. Said ,&nbsp;M. Awang Kechik ,&nbsp;D. Tahir ,&nbsp;M.K. Abdul Karim","doi":"10.1016/j.radi.2024.12.011","DOIUrl":"10.1016/j.radi.2024.12.011","url":null,"abstract":"<div><h3>Introduction</h3><div>Optimizing the image quality of Positron Emission Tomography/Computed Tomography (PET/CT) systems is crucial for effective monitoring, diagnosis, and treatment planning in oncology. This study evaluates the impact of time-of-flight (TOF) on PET/CT performance, focusing on varying penalty β values within Q. Clear reconstruction algorithm.</div></div><div><h3>Methods</h3><div>The study measured signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) using the Discovery MI PET/CT scanner and NEMA IQ phantom filled with the radiotracer fluorodeoxyglucose (¹⁸F-FDG). PET/CT scans were performed with and without TOF using β values of 100, 500, 1000, 1500, 2000, and 3000. Pixel intensity values were measured using ImageJ software, and SNR and CNR were calculated.</div></div><div><h3>Results</h3><div>Results indicated that increasing β values improved SNR and CNR for both non-TOF and TOF images. At a β value of 100, SNR and CNR increased across all sphere sizes (10 mm, 13 mm, 17 mm, 22 mm, 28 mm, 37 mm) when comparing non-TOF and TOF images. However, β values of 500 or higher led to decreased SNR and CNR, particularly in larger spheres (22 mm, 28 mm, 37 mm), when TOF was utilized.</div></div><div><h3>Conclusion</h3><div>These findings underscore the importance of optimizing β values and employing TOF reconstruction in PET/CT scans to achieve the highest possible image quality.</div></div><div><h3>Implications for practice</h3><div>In clinical practice, practitioners should adjust β values in accordance with routine protocols, considering the size of the target region and the use of TOF reconstruction.</div></div>","PeriodicalId":47416,"journal":{"name":"Radiography","volume":"31 1","pages":"Pages 343-349"},"PeriodicalIF":2.5,"publicationDate":"2025-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"142903860","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}