Radioactive-emission-measurement optimization to specific body structures

• US 8,094,894 B2
• Filed: 12/01/2006
• Issued: 01/10/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/2000
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Spectrum Dynamics Medical Ltd
• Original Assignee: Spectrum Dynamics LLC
• Inventors: Nagler, Michael, Dichterman, Eli, Zilberstein, Yoel, Ravhon, Ran, Ziv, Omer, Rousso, Benny, Ben-Haim, Shlomo
• Primary Examiner(s): Akhavannik, Hadi
• Application Number:
  US11/607,075
• Publication Number:
  US 20070156047A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,866 Days
• Field of Search: 382/128, 600/407
• US Class Current: 382/128
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/00 Apparatus or devices for radiation diagnosis; Apparatus or devices for radiation diagnosis combined with radiation therapy equipment instruments measuring radiation intensity for application in the field of nuclear medicine, e.g. in vivo counting, G01T1/161; apparatus for taking X-ray photographs G03B42/02
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/02 Arrangements for diagnosis sequentially in different planes; Stereoscopic radiation diagnosis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/06 Diaphragms
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4258 for detecting non x-ray radiation, e.g. gamma radiation A61B6/037 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/4266 characterised by using a plurality of detector units A61B6/4014 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/481 involving the use of contrast agents
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/54 Control of apparatus or devices for radiation diagnosis
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/1642 using a scintillation crystal and position sensing photodetector arrays, e.g. ANGER cameras
• CPC Class Codes: G01T 1/1644 using an array of optically separate scintillation elements permitting direct location of scintillations G01T1/1645 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10072 Tomographic images
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0012 Biomedical image inspection

Abstract

Systems, methods, and probes are provided for functional imaging by radioactive-emission-measurements, specific to body structures, such as the prostate, the esophagus, the cervix, the uterus, the ovaries, the heart, the breast, the brain, and the whole body, and other body structures. The nuclear imaging may be performed alone, or together with structural imaging, for example, by x-rays, ultrasound, or MRI. Preferably, the radioactive-emission-measuring probes include detectors, which are adapted for individual motions with respect to the probe housings, to generate views from different orientations and to change their view orientations. These motions are optimized with respect to functional information gained about the body structure, by identifying preferred sets of views for measurements, based on models of the body structures and information theoretic measures. A second iteration, for identifying preferred sets of views for measurements of a portion of a body structure, based on models of a location of a pathology that has been identified, makes it possible, in effect, to zoom in on a suspected pathology. The systems are preprogrammed to provide these motions automatically.

Claims

1. A radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system, for tomographic imaging of a body structure of the patient, after an administration of a radiopharmaceutical, the radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system comprising:

a housing for tomographic imaging of the body structure, the housing remaining stationary during data acquisition for a tomographic image;

at least one detector assembly system, mounted within the housing, the detector assembly system comprising;

a plurality of internal housings each comprises;

a plurality of collimated solid-state detecting units, arranged within the internal housing, each of the detecting units defining a solid-state detector pixel- and a solid collection angle, and

at least one internal housing motion provider having a motion transfer link configured for providing a rotational motion to one of the plurality of internal housings around a respective rotation axis, during said data acquisition for the tomographic image; and

a controller, configured for controlling said detector motion provider;

wherein said housing is contoured so as to bring said plurality of collimated solid-state detecting units to a close proximity with the body structure.

2. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, wherein the internal housing rotational motion is an oscillatory rotational motion, so as to result it a sweeping motion.

3. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, and further including a plurality of detector assembly systems, arranged along the housing contour, each of the detector assembly systems being configured for an assembly rotational motion around a different assembly axis of rotation.

4. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of detecting units are configured for detecting-unit sweeping motions in an additional direction, during data acquisition for the tomographic image.

5. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of detecting units are arranged in arrays, to form rigid blocks, and the blocks are configured for block sweeping motions in an additional direction, during data acquisition for the tomographic image, the blocks'"'"' axes of rotation being orthogonal to the assembly'"'"'s axis of rotation.

6. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, and further including an assembly motion provider, in mechanical communicating with the internal housing, for providing assembly lateral motion, during data acquisition for the tomographic image.

7. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 6, wherein the assembly lateral motion is an oscillatory lateral motion.

8. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, wherein

said plurality of collimated solid-state detecting units are mounted and directed within the internal housing so as to obtain an optimal set of views of a region of interest associated with the heart for reconstructing a three-dimensional image thereof;

wherein said housing is contoured so as to bring said plurality of collimated solid-state detecting units to a close proximity with the thorax.

9. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, wherein said

plurality of collimated solid-state detecting units are arranged and directed within the internal housing so as to capture a set of optimal views of a region of interest associated with the brain for reconstructing a three-dimensional image thereof;

wherein said housing is contoured so as to bring said plurality of collimated solid-state detecting units to a close proximity with the head.

10. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, further comprises

a three-dimensional structural imager.

11. The dual imaging system of claim 10, wherein the three-dimensional structural imager is selected from the group consisting of an x-ray CT, an MRI, a three-dimensional ultrasound, and a combination thereof.

12. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, wherein said housing is shaped for insertion to a body lumen, for tomographic imaging the body structure from the body lumen,

said housing being contoured so as to bring said plurality of collimated solid-state detecting units to a close proximity with the body structure from the body lumen.

13. The breast radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1,

wherein said plurality of collimated solid-state detecting units are arranged and directed within the internal housing to capture a set of optimal views of a region of interest associated with a breast for reconstructing a three-dimensional image thereof;

wherein said housing is contoured so as to bring said plurality of collimated solid-state detecting units to a close proximity with the breast.

14. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 13, and further including a plurality of detector assembly systems, arranged on at least one of a support plate and a compression plate, each of the detector assembly systems being configured for an assembly rotational motion around a different assembly axis of rotation.

15. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 13, and further including a plurality of detector assembly systems, arranged on both a support plate and a compression plate, each of the detector assembly systems being configured for an assembly rotational motion around a different assembly axis of rotation.

16. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 13, wherein the plurality of detecting units are arranged in arrays, to form rigid blocks, and the blocks are configured for block sweeping motions in an additional direction, during data acquisition for the tomographic image, the blocks'"'"' axes of rotation being orthogonal to the assembly'"'"'s axis of rotation,

and further including an assembly motion provider, in mechanical communication with each of the blocks within the internal housing, for providing the blocks with the block sweeping motion in the additional direction.

17. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 13, and further including an ultrasound imager, co-registered to the breast radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system.

18. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 13, and further including an x-ray imager, co-registered to the breast radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system.

19. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 13, and further including a surgical instrument, co-registered to the breast radioactive-emission-measuring-probe.

20. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, comprising circuitry configured to drive said system to perform diagnostic radioactive-emission measurements of an in-vivo body structure, selectively at a predefined set of views,

wherein said circuitry controller is further configured to:

(a) model suspected pathology and anatomical constraints, which limit accessibility to the suspected pathology within the body-structure;

(b) obtain a collection of views of the modeled suspected pathology and the modeled anatomical constraints;

(c) form sets of views from the collection of views and scoring them, with a scoring function;

(d) select one of the sets of views from a second collection of views, based on its score, as a predefined pathology set of views; and

(e) drive said system to perform diagnostic radioactive-emission measurements of the in-vivo pathology, selectively at the predefined pathology set of views.

21. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, wherein said at least one detector assembly is configured for translation motion relative to said housing during said data acquisition.

22. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, wherein said controller is configured for controlling said assembly rotational motion according to a model modeling the anatomical constraints, which limit accessibility to the body.

23. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, wherein at least a portion of said housing is which is substantially transparent to nuclear radiation.

24. The radioactive-emission-measuring-probe system of claim 1, wherein said housing having an open counter.