Reconstruction and imaging of the beating heart.

Computer methods are discussed which have been developed by the Medical Image processing Group (formerly at SUNY/Buffalo, now at the University of Pennsylvania) for the reconstruction of the beating human heart from x-ray projections. Two data collection modes are emphasized: the dynamic spatial reconstructor and gated cardiac scanning with a rotate-only (third-generation) computed tomography scanner. How the reconstructed beating heart can be displayed by means of dynamic computer graphics is also illustrated.