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Iterative image reconstruction that includes a total variation regularization for radial MRI

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Abstract

This paper presents an iterative image reconstruction method for radial encodings in MRI based on a total variation (TV) regularization. The algebraic reconstruction method combined with total variation regularization (ART_TV) is implemented with a regularization parameter specifying the weight of the TV term in the optimization process. We used numerical simulations of a Shepp–Logan phantom, as well as experimental imaging of a phantom that included a rectangular-wave chart, to evaluate the performance of ART_TV, and to compare it with that of the Fourier transform (FT) method. The trade-off between spatial resolution and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) was investigated for different values of the regularization parameter by experiments on a phantom and a commercially available MRI system. ART_TV was inferior to the FT with respect to the evaluation of the modulation transfer function (MTF), especially at high frequencies; however, it outperformed the FT with regard to the SNR. In accordance with the results of SNR measurement, visual impression suggested that the image quality of ART_TV was better than that of the FT for reconstruction of a noisy image of a kiwi fruit. In conclusion, ART_TV provides radial MRI with improved image quality for low-SNR data; however, the regularization parameter in ART_TV is a critical factor for obtaining improvement over the FT.

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Acknowledgments

This research has been supported by a Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (KAKENHI No. 26461832).

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest in this study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, Tokyo Women’s Medical University Medical Center East, 2-1-10 Arakawa-ku, Tokyo, Japan

    Shinya Kojima, Masami Hirata & Eiko Ueno

  2. Tokyo Metropolitan University, 7-2-10 Arakawa-ku, Tokyo, Japan

    Hiroyuki Shinohara

  3. Faculty of Childhood Education, Yokohama Soei University, 1 Miho-cho, Midori-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan

    Takeyuki Hashimoto

Authors
  1. Shinya Kojima
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  2. Hiroyuki Shinohara
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  3. Takeyuki Hashimoto
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  4. Masami Hirata
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  5. Eiko Ueno
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Correspondence to Shinya Kojima.

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Kojima, S., Shinohara, H., Hashimoto, T. et al. Iterative image reconstruction that includes a total variation regularization for radial MRI. Radiol Phys Technol 8, 295–304 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12194-015-0320-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12194-015-0320-7

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