Long-term evaluation of a selective retrograde coronary venous perfusion model in pigs (Sus scrofa domestica).

The lack of suitable target vessels remains a challenge for aortocoronary bypass grafting in end-stage coronary heart disease. This study aimed to investigate the arterialization of cardiac veins as an alternative myocardial revascularization strategy in an experimental long-term model in pigs. Selective retrograde perfusion of a coronary vein (aorta to coronary vein bypass, retrobypass) before ligation of the ramus interventricularis paraconalis (equivalent to the left anterior descending artery in humans) was performed in 20 German Landrace pigs (Sus scrofa domestica).

Prospectively ECG-triggered high-pitch spiral acquisition for coronary CT angiography using dual source CT: technique and initial experience.

Objective: We evaluated radiation exposure and image quality of a new coronary CT angiography protocol, high-pitch spiral acquisition, using dual source CT (DSCT).

Material And Methods: Coronary CTAwas performed in 25 consecutive patients with a stable heart rate of 60 bpm or less after premedication, using 2 x 128 0.6-mm sections, 38.

Cardiac spiral dual-source CT with high pitch: a feasibility study.

Increase of pitch in spiral CT decreases data acquisition time; dual-source CT (DSCT) systems provide improved temporal resolution. We evaluated the combination of these two features. Measurements were performed using a commercial DSCT system equipped with prototype software allowing pitch factors from p = 0.

Respiratory phase-correlated micro-CT imaging of free-breathing rodents.

We provide a dedicated phase-correlated imaging procedure for respiratory gating in micro-CT imaging with automatic detection of the optimal data window providing the least amount of motion blurring. A rawdata-based motion function (kymogram) was used for synchronization purposes and for identification of the optimal data window used for phase-correlated image reconstruction. Measurements were performed on a dual-source micro-CT scanner.

Technical note: raw data-based approach to identify the optimal reconstruction phase in coronary computed tomography angiography.

For coronary computed tomography (CT) angiography, the reconstruction phase finally used has to be iteratively adapted to the patient-specific heart motion to provide optimal image quality and therewith to improve the diagnostic value. The purpose was to provide an automatically raw data-based identification of the patient-specific optimal reconstruction phase for cardiac computed tomography imaging. We validated our method by a visual assessment of 65 patient data sets.

Cardiac phase-correlated image reconstruction and advanced image processing in pulmonary CT imaging.

Image quality in pulmonary CT imaging is commonly degraded by cardiac motion artifacts. Phase-correlated image reconstruction algorithms known from cardiac imaging can reduce motion artifacts but increase image noise and conventionally require a concurrently acquired ECG signal for synchronization. Techniques are presented to overcome these limitations.

Real-time determination of the optimal reconstruction phase to control ECG pulsing in spiral cardiac CT.

The reconstruction phase providing optimal image quality in coronary CT angiography is dependent on the heart rate but additionally displays substantial patient-dependent variation. The purpose of this study was to provide online identification of the patient-specific optimal reconstruction phase during CT coronary angiography data acquisition and to allow adaptation of tube current modulation for the individual patient. A raw data-based cardiac motion signal (kymogram) was used for the detection of the optimal reconstruction phase.

Modulation transfer function-based assessment of temporal resolution: validation for single- and dual-source CT.

The purpose of this study was to determine a manufacturer-independent quality assurance measurement for temporal resolution with a three-dimensional cardiac motion robot; validation was with single-source (SS) and dual-source (DS) computed tomography (CT). Image acquisition was performed by using standard cardiac protocols. Image contrast-based modulation transfer function (MTF) was assessed as function of time.

Validation of a raw data-based synchronization signal (kymogram) for phase-correlated cardiac image reconstruction.

Phase-correlated reconstruction is commonly used in computed tomography (CT)-based cardiac imaging. Alternatively to the commonly used ECG, the raw data-based kymogram function can be used as a synchronization signal. We used raw data of 100 consecutive patient exams to compare the performance of kymogram function to the ECG signal.

Rawdata-based detection of the optimal reconstruction phase in ECG-gated cardiac image reconstruction.

In order to achieve diagnostically useful CT (computed tomography) images of the moving heart, the standard image reconstruction has to be modified to a phase-correlated reconstruction, which considers the motion phase of the heart and generates a quasi-static image in one defined motion phase. For that purpose a synchronization signal is needed, typically a concurrent ECG recording. Commonly, the reconstruction phase is adapted by the user to the patient-specific heart motion to improve the image quality and thus the diagnostic value.