Brain perfusion SPECT acquired using a dedicated brain configuration on a 360° whole-body CZT-camera

High-quality brain perfusion SPECT images may be achieved with a high-speed recording using 360° CZT camera

“…To date, CZT-SPECT studies published on brain perfusion [ 18 , 20 ] or on dopamine receptors [ 32 ] are scarce and involve only very limited study populations. However, the superiority of CZT-based detectors over the NaI-scintillator systems utilized by current Anger cameras has already been clearly established, even in the clinical routine of SPECT investigations, although mostly for dedicated cardiac cameras [ 21 , 33 , 34 ].…”

“…In particular, for head imaging, the 12 detectors surround the head and extend inwards to locate only a few centimeters from the head surface, i.e., in a configuration that could have been designed for a dedicated brain camera. This proximity of detectors is highly advantageous for spatial resolution and count sensitivity, and this advantage is further increased by a focal recording mode, enabling most of the recorded projections to be concentrated on a delineated brain area [ 20 ].…”

“…More precisely, for each of the 2 heads of the Anger camera which were placed at 180° apart and equipped with low-energy high-resolution (LEHR) parallel collimators, 32 frames were recorded through a 180° circular orbit with a radius of approximately 15.5 cm. For the CZT camera, as already detailed elsewhere [ 20 ], 12 high-resolution swiveling detectors were positioned close to the head around a 360° configuration, and a total of 2160 projections were recorded, of which 80% were focused on the parenchymal brain volume. This “focus mode” requires a short pre-scan recording of approximately 20 s to position the specific brain region of interest.…”

“…In more recent years, owing to developments in gamma camera technology with the introduction of cadmium-zinc-telluride (CZT) semiconductors and original collimation systems, marked improvements in SPECT image quality have been clearly established [ 11 – 16 ], mainly due to the significant impact of such technological advances on both intrinsic spatial [ 17 ] and energy resolution [ 18 , 19 ]. Moreover, certain CZT cameras equipped with original collimation systems provide higher tomographic count sensitivities, thus allowing reductions in recording time and/or injected activity [ 20 ]. In particular, a 360° CZT camera (Veriton®, Spectrum Dynamics Medical) combines high performance CZT detectors with an original 360° ring configuration geometry that allows the detectors to be positioned very close to the patient’s head [ 20 ], thus providing a configuration for brain imaging that is likely to enhance both count sensitivity and image quality.…”

“…Moreover, certain CZT cameras equipped with original collimation systems provide higher tomographic count sensitivities, thus allowing reductions in recording time and/or injected activity [ 20 ]. In particular, a 360° CZT camera (Veriton®, Spectrum Dynamics Medical) combines high performance CZT detectors with an original 360° ring configuration geometry that allows the detectors to be positioned very close to the patient’s head [ 20 ], thus providing a configuration for brain imaging that is likely to enhance both count sensitivity and image quality. Nonetheless, most prior studies comparing CZT with Anger cameras have been conducted in the context of myocardial perfusion imaging [ 21 – 28 ], and very limited data is available for brain perfusion SPECT [ 18 ].…”