Mega-Voltage systems are used in radiation oncology both for external radiation delivery and patient positioning prior to treatment. A pair of portal images compared with digitally reconstructed radiographs is currently the gold standard for positioning but new developments have made possible the use of Mega-Voltage Cone Beam CT for better 3D setup. The non-ideal imaging geometry of the treatment unit has a direct impact on both methods. It led to the use of a reticule attachment as reference for the scale and the isocenter position on the portal images. The reticule has limited precision and occasionally super-imposes anatomical information. As for Cone Beam, the image quality crucially depends on the knowledge of the scan geometry during the acquisition. The reproducibility of the detector position at each angle will affect the image reconstruction and determine how frequently geometrical calibration must be performed. The objectives of this study are to measure the flex of the detector and evaluate its reproducibility. A RID 1640 Perkin Elmer a-Si Flat Panel is installed on a Siemens Primus linear accelerator with a positioner similar the the one used in the Oncor product. Three original methods are used to investigate the behavior in space and time of the imaging system. A reticule and a Plumb Bob tip are placed along the line formed by the isocenter and the source. Their positions projected on the flat panel for different gantry positions are used to calculate the mechanical flex. Projection matrices obtained in a geometrical Cone Beam calibration are also used to quantify the flat panel sagging. Six full sets of data were acquired over a period of 5 months and recorded overall mechanical flexes of 1 and 3 mm for the transversal and longitudinal directions respectively. The absolute magnitude of the flat panel displacement varies slightly with the method used but the discrepancy stays within the laser precision used for alignment. The small standard deviations of the flat panel displacement (< 1 mm) suggest great stability over time and permits the clinical implementation of patient positioning without the reticule. More experiments on the positioner with the complete set of projection matrices need to be performed to characterize the long-term behavior of the system and to determinate how frequently the Cone Beam calibration needs to be done to conserve image quality. Future work will develop a daily QA protocol to detect possible collisions that would bring the Cone Beam imaging system out of geometrical calibration.
Recent developments in two-dimensional x-ray detector technology have made volumetric Cone Beam CT (CBCT) a feasible approach for integration with conventional medical linear accelerators. The requirements of a robust image guidance system for radiation therapy include the challenging combination of soft tissue sensitivity with clinically reasonable doses. The low contrast objects may not be perceptible with MV energies due to the relatively poor signal to noise ratio (SNR) performance. We have developed an imaging system that is optimized for MV and can acquire Megavoltage CBCT images containing soft tissue contrast using a 6MV x-ray beam. This system is capable of resolving relative electron density as low as 1% with clinically acceptable radiation doses. There are many factors such as image noise, x-ray scatter, improper calibration and acquisitions that have a profound effect on the imaging performance of CBCT and in this study attempts were made to optimize these factors in order to maximize the SNR. A QC-3V phantom was used to determine the contrast to noise ratio (CNR) and f50 of a single 2-D projection. The computed f50 was 0.43 lp/mm and the CNR for a radiation dose of 0.02cGy was 43. Clinical Megavoltage CBCT images acquired with this system demonstrate that anatomical structures such as the prostate in a relatively large size patient are visible using radiation doses in range of 6 to 8cGy.
Portal images allow the physician to visualize and quantify the position of anatomical structures within the radiation field during the treatment of cancer with radiation therapy. In this project, we exploit the presence of the low intensity bremsstrahlung photons present in the electron beam, and the high sensitivity of the new technology of flat panel based on amorphous-silicon arrays to generate images of the electron beam treatment field. This opens the possibility of routine on-line electron beam treatment verification. A large-scale array of 1024 X 1024 pixels (41 x 41 cm2) was used to acquire images from electron beams with energies from 6 to 21 MeV. For each energy, a gain correction image was acquired to compensate for the bremsstrahlung angular dependence. Several integration time factors were tested to obtain verification images within 30 monitor units, a low number for treatments with electron beams. Images of the head sections of a Rando phantom with 50 MU or less were acquired. Anatomical structures present in the phantom are clearly seen. Parameters influencing the quality of images acquired with electron beams, such as the detector integration time and the beam energy will be discussed. Examples of clinical images acquired with electron beams will also be presented.
This paper addressed two important aspects of dental analysis: (1) location and (2) identification of the types of teeth by means of 3-D image acquisition and segmentation. The 3-D images of both maxillaries are acquired using a wax wafer as support. The interstices between teeth are detected by non-linear filtering of the 3-D and grey-level data. Two operators are presented: one for the detection of the interstices between incisors, canines, and premolars and one for those between molars. Teeth are then identified by mapping the imprint under analysis on the computer model of an 'ideal' imprint. For the mapping to be valid, a set of three reference points is detected on the imprint. Then, the points are put in correspondence with similar points on the model. Two such points are chosen based on a least-squares fit of a second-order polynomial of the 3-D data in the area of canines. This area is of particular interest since the canines show a very characteristic shape and are easily detected on the imprint. The mapping technique is described in detail in the paper as well as pre-processing of the 3-D profiles. Experimental results are presented for different imprints.
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