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Musculoskeletal applications of flat-panel volume CT

Skeletal Radiology volume 37, pages 1069–1076 (2008)Cite this article

Abstract

Flat-panel volume computed tomography (fpVCT) is a recent development in imaging. We discuss some of the musculoskeletal applications of a high-resolution flat-panel CT scanner. FpVCT has four main advantages over conventional multidetector computed tomography (MDCT): high-resolution imaging; volumetric coverage; dynamic imaging; omni-scanning. The overall effective dose of fpVCT is comparable to that of MDCT scanning. Although current fpVCT technology has higher spatial resolution, its contrast resolution is slightly lower than that of MDCT (5-10HU vs. 1-3HU respectively). We discuss the efficacy and potential utility of fpVCT in various applications related to musculoskeletal radiology and review some novel applications for pediatric bones, soft tissues, tumor perfusion, and imaging of tissue-engineered bone growth. We further discuss high-resolution CT and omni-scanning (combines fluoroscopic and tomographic imaging).

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Acknowledgments

The authors wish to thank Drs. Willi Kalendar, Diego Jaramillo, Susan A. Connolly, Gleeson F. Rebello, and Paul Kleinman for the use of their images.

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Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 55 Fruit Street, FND-216, Boston, MA, 02114, USA

    Benjamin Reichardt, Ammar Sarwar, Arnold Cheung, Miriam A. Bredella, Thomas J. Brady & Rajiv Gupta

  2. Department of Medical Physics in Radiology, DKFZ, Heidelberg, Germany

    Soenke H. Bartling

  3. Siemens Medical Solutions, Forchheim, Germany

    Michael Grasruck & Christianne Leidecker

Authors
  1. Benjamin Reichardt
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  2. Ammar Sarwar
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  3. Soenke H. Bartling
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  4. Arnold Cheung
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  5. Michael Grasruck
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  6. Christianne Leidecker
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  7. Miriam A. Bredella
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  8. Thomas J. Brady
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  9. Rajiv Gupta
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Correspondence to Rajiv Gupta.

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Reichardt, B., Sarwar, A., Bartling, S.H. et al. Musculoskeletal applications of flat-panel volume CT. Skeletal Radiol 37, 1069–1076 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-008-0473-0

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00256-008-0473-0

Keywords

  • Musculoskeletal applications
  • Flat-panel volume computed tomography
  • High-resolution imaging
  • Trabecular imaging