We propose a CBCT image quality improvement method based on anatomic signature and auto-context alternating regression forest. Patient-specific anatomical features are extracted from the aligned training images and served as signatures for each voxel. The most relevant and informative features are identified to train regression forest. The welltrained regression forest is used to correct the CBCT of a new patient. This proposed algorithm was evaluated using 10 patients’ data with CBCT and CT images. The mean absolute error (MAE), peak signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) and normalized cross correlation (NCC) indexes were used to quantify the correction accuracy of the proposed algorithm. The mean MAE, PSNR and NCC between corrected CBCT and ground truth CT were 16.66HU, 37.28dB and 0.98, which demonstrated the CBCT correction accuracy of the proposed learning-based method. We have developed a learning-based method and demonstrated that this method could significantly improve CBCT image quality. The proposed method has great potential in improving CBCT image quality to a level close to planning CT, therefore, allowing its quantitative use in CBCT-guided adaptive radiotherapy.
We propose a denoising method of CT image based on low-rank sparse coding. The proposed method constructs an adaptive dictionary of image patches and estimates the sparse coding regularization parameters using the Bayesian interpretation. A low-rank approximation approach is used to simultaneously construct the dictionary and achieve sparse representation through clustering similar image patches. A variable-splitting scheme and a quadratic optimization are used to reconstruct CT image based on achieved sparse coefficients. We tested this denoising technology using phantom, brain and abdominal CT images. The experimental results showed that the proposed method delivers state-of-art denoising performance, both in terms of objective criteria and visual quality.
X-ray computed tomography (CT) is widely used in radiation therapy treatment planning in recent years. However, metal implants such as dental fillings and hip prostheses can cause severe bright and dark streaking artifacts in reconstructed CT images. These artifacts decrease image contrast and degrade HU accuracy, leading to inaccuracies in target delineation and dose calculation. In this work, a metal artifact reduction method is proposed based on the intrinsic anatomical similarity between neighboring CT slices. Neighboring CT slices from the same patient exhibit similar anatomical features. Exploiting this anatomical similarity, a gamma map is calculated as a weighted summation of relative HU error and distance error for each pixel in an artifact-corrupted CT image relative to a neighboring, artifactfree image. The minimum value in the gamma map for each pixel is used to identify an appropriate pixel from the artifact-free CT slice to replace the corresponding artifact-corrupted pixel. With the proposed method, the mean CT HU error was reduced from 360 HU and 460 HU to 24 HU and 34 HU on head and pelvis CT images, respectively. Dose calculation accuracy also improved, as the dose difference was reduced from greater than 20% to less than 4%. Using 3%/3mm criteria, the gamma analysis failure rate was reduced from 23.25% to 0.02%. An image-based metal artifact reduction method is proposed that replaces corrupted image pixels with pixels from neighboring CT slices free of metal artifacts. This method is shown to be capable of suppressing streaking artifacts, thereby improving HU and dose calculation accuracy.
We have developed a novel patch-based cone beam CT (CBCT) artifact correction method based
on prior CT images. First, we used the image registration to align the planning CT with the CBCT to reduce
the geometry difference between the two images. Then, we brought the planning CT-based prior information
into the Bayesian deconvolution framework to perform the CBCT scatter artifact correction based on patchwise
nonlocal mean strategy. We evaluated the proposed correction method using a Catphan phantom with
multiple inserts based on contrast-to-noise ratios (CNR) and signal-to-noise ratios (SNR), and the image spatial
non-uniformity (ISN). All values of CNR, SNR and ISN in the corrected CBCT image were much closer to
those in the planning CT images. The results demonstrated that the proposed CT-guided correction method
could significantly reduce scatter artifacts and improve the image quality. This method has great potential to
correct CBCT images allowing its use in adaptive radiotherapy.
Access to the requested content is limited to institutions that have purchased or subscribe to SPIE eBooks.
You are receiving this notice because your organization may not have SPIE eBooks access.*
*Shibboleth/Open Athens users─please
sign in
to access your institution's subscriptions.
To obtain this item, you may purchase the complete book in print or electronic format on
SPIE.org.
INSTITUTIONAL Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.
PERSONAL Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.