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Siemens Healthcare 's new technology has been discovered which could help reduce the radiation dose given to patients during CT scanning by as much as 60%.

Radiology giant Siemens Healthcare will introduce the new Iterative Reconstruction in Image Space (IRIS) technology into its SOMATOM Definition range by the summer, offering clinicians two options compared to the current standard method for image reconstruction, known as Filtered Back Projection (FBP). With IRIS, clinicians can either generate the same image quality as with FBP and reduce the dose by up to 60%, or can maintain the same dose and generate significantly better image quality.

Using IRIS, all raw data information is transferred from the slow processing raw data area to the more-efficient image data area in the first reconstruction cycle. The resulting master image contains the finest details, but also significant noise image, which is removed in the subsequent iterative steps in the image data area. This means the image is gradually cleared of noise and artifacts in small steps that do not affect the high spatial image resolution, eliminating the need for time-consuming back projections. This allows a precise reflection of the actual properties of the final image from raw data with relatively little computing effort.

Explaining how the technology works, Russell Lodge, CT product manager at Siemens, told HES: “Iterative reconstruction formerly involved a ‘correction loop’ in which sectional images were calculated in stages by a gradual approximation to the actual density distribution. One problem associated with this method is that the CT measuring system must be mathematically modelled during the calculation of the synthetic projection data, which requires immense computing power plus a large number of iterations. In short, time and computing capacity requirements prohibited the application in clinical settings. Now, IRIS is poised to widen the scope of iterative reconstruction and bring it into the clinical field.
 
“IRIS is able to significantly reduce the radiation dose without quality losses. As an alternative, it can also be used to substantially increase the image quality of reconstructed images with the same dose as standard technology.”

Source: Siemens Healthcare

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