Lorimer Lisa, Gemmell Howard G, Sharp Peter F, McKiddie Fergus I, Staff Roger T
Department of Nuclear Medicine, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, NHS-Grampian, University of Aberdeen, Aberdeen, UK.
Nucl Med Commun. 2012 Nov;33(11):1212-6. doi: 10.1097/MNM.0b013e3283583696.
Dimercaptosuccinic acid imaging is the 'gold standard' for the detection of cortical defects and diagnosis of scarring of the kidneys. The Siemens planar processing package, which implements adaptive noise reduction using the Pixon algorithm, is designed to allow a reduction in image noise, enabling improved image quality and reduced acquisition time/injected activity. This study aimed to establish the level of improvement in image quality achievable using this algorithm. Images were acquired of a phantom simulating a single kidney with a range of defects of varying sizes, positions and contrasts. These images were processed using the Pixon processing software and shown to 12 observers (six experienced and six novices) who were asked to rate the images on a six-point scale depending on their confidence that a defect was present. The data were analysed using a receiver operating characteristic approach. Results showed that processed images significantly improved the performance of the experienced observers in terms of their sensitivity and specificity. Although novice observers showed significant increase in sensitivity when using the software, a significant decrease in specificity was also seen. This study concludes that the Pixon software can be used to improve the assessment of cortical defects in dimercaptosuccinic acid imaging by suitably trained observers.
二巯基琥珀酸成像术是检测皮质缺损及诊断肾脏瘢痕的“金标准”。西门子平面处理软件包采用Pixon算法实现自适应降噪，旨在降低图像噪声，提高图像质量并缩短采集时间/减少注射剂量。本研究旨在确定使用该算法可实现的图像质量改善水平。对模拟单个肾脏且具有一系列大小、位置和对比度各异的缺损的体模进行成像。这些图像使用Pixon处理软件进行处理，并展示给12名观察者（6名经验丰富者和6名新手），要求他们根据对是否存在缺损的信心程度，以六点量表对图像进行评分。使用受试者操作特征方法对数据进行分析。结果表明，处理后的图像在敏感性和特异性方面显著提高了经验丰富观察者的表现。虽然新手观察者在使用该软件时敏感性显著增加，但特异性也显著降低。本研究得出结论，经过适当培训的观察者可使用Pixon软件改善二巯基琥珀酸成像中皮质缺损的评估。
