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Generation of a Four-Class Attenuation Map for MRI-Based Attenuation Correction of PET Data in the Head Area Using a Novel Combination of STE/Dixon-MRI and FCM Clustering

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Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this study is to generate a four-class magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based attenuation map (μ-map) for attenuation correction of positron emission tomography (PET) data of the head area using a novel combination of short echo time (STE)/Dixon-MRI and a dedicated image segmentation method.

Procedures

MR images of the head area were acquired using STE and two-point Dixon sequences. μ-maps were derived from MRI images based on a fuzzy C-means (FCM) clustering method along with morphologic operations. Quantitative assessment was performed to evaluate generated MRI-based μ-maps compared to X-ray computed tomography (CT)-based μ-maps.

Results

The voxel-by-voxel comparison of MR-based and CT-based segmentation results yielded an average of more than 95 % for accuracy and specificity in the cortical bone, soft tissue, and air region. MRI-based μ-maps show a high correlation with those derived from CT scans (R 2 > 0.95).

Conclusions

Results indicate that STE/Dixon-MRI data in combination with FCM-based segmentation yields precise MR-based μ-maps for PET attenuation correction in hybrid PET/MRI systems.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by the Tehran University of Medical Sciences under grant no. 25095.

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Research Center for Molecular and Cellular Imaging, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Parisa Khateri, Hamidreza Saligheh Rad, Anahita Fathi Kazerooni, Afshin Akbarzadeh & Mohammad Reza Ay

  2. Department of Medical Physics and Biomedical Engineering, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Hamidreza Saligheh Rad, Amir Homayoun Jafari, Anahita Fathi Kazerooni & Mohammad Reza Ay

  3. Research Center for Biomedical and Robotics Technology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Amir Homayoun Jafari & Mohsen Shojae Moghadam

  4. MRI Imaging Center, Payambaran Hospital, Tehran, Iran

    Amir Homayoun Jafari & Mohsen Shojae Moghadam

  5. Imaging Center, Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Arvin Aryan

  6. Chronic Respiratory Diseases Research Center, National Research Institute of Tuberculosis and Lung Diseases (NRITLD), Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Pardis Ghafarian

  7. PET/CT and Cyclotron Center, Masih Daneshvari Hospital, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Pardis Ghafarian

Authors
  1. Parisa Khateri
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  2. Hamidreza Saligheh Rad
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  3. Amir Homayoun Jafari
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  4. Anahita Fathi Kazerooni
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  5. Afshin Akbarzadeh
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  6. Mohsen Shojae Moghadam
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  7. Arvin Aryan
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  8. Pardis Ghafarian
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  9. Mohammad Reza Ay
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Mohammad Reza Ay.

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Khateri, P., Saligheh Rad, H., Jafari, A.H. et al. Generation of a Four-Class Attenuation Map for MRI-Based Attenuation Correction of PET Data in the Head Area Using a Novel Combination of STE/Dixon-MRI and FCM Clustering. Mol Imaging Biol 17, 884–892 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11307-015-0849-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11307-015-0849-1

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