Optimal 3-dimensional method for right and left ventricular fourier phase analysis in electrocardiography-gated blood-pool SPECT.

BACKGROUND

To overcome some of the limitations imposed by planar imaging, we aimed to optimize the use of first harmonic Fourier phase analysis (FPA) in electrocardiography-gated blood-pool single photon emission computed tomography (GBPS) by comparing different quantitative, 3-dimensional methods.

METHODS AND RESULTS

Three groups of patients who underwent GBPS were evaluated: group 1, 8 patients with no heart disease; group 2, 10 patients with left ventricular disease; and group 3, 6 patients with right ventricular disease. Six different methods for FPA were compared: surface, cylindrical, spherical, and hybrid methods with fixed thresholding and spherical and hybrid methods with multiple thresholding. The hybrid method with multiple thresholding for the left ventricle and the spherical method for the right ventricle provided the highest discrimination score (phase) between normal and abnormal ventricles. Among methods with similar discrimination score for these 2 methods, the cylindrical and hybrid methods for the left ventricle and the spherical method for the right ventricle provided the best homogeneity of phase distribution histogram in normal ventricles. These were considered the optimal methods for FPA.

CONCLUSIONS

The hybrid or cylindrical method for the left ventricle and the spherical method for the right ventricle with fixed thresholding are the optimal methods for FPA in GBPS.