System and method for rapid quantitative dynamic molecular imaging scans

• US 9,436,989 B2
• Filed: 06/04/2012
• Issued: 09/06/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 06/03/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Bayer Healthcare LLC (Bayer AG)
• Original Assignee: Bayer Healthcare LLC (Bayer AG)
• Inventors: Uber, Arthur E. III
• Primary Examiner(s): Liew, Alex
• Application Number:
  US14/123,390
• Publication Number:
  US 20140119621A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,555 Days
• Field of Search: 382128-134
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 2576/023 for the heart
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/055 involving electronic [EMR] or nuclear [NMR] magnetic resonance, e.g. magnetic resonance imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/318 Heart-related electrical modalities, e.g. electrocardiography [ECG]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/704 Tables
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/7285 for synchronising or triggering a physiological measurement or image acquisition with a physiological event or waveform, e.g. an ECG signal A61B6/5205, A61B6/541, A61B8/5207, A61B8/543 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/032 Transmission computed tomography [CT]
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/037 Emission tomography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/0407 Supports, e.g. tables or beds, for the body or parts of the body
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/467 characterised by special input means
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/481 involving the use of contrast agents
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/486 involving generating temporal series of image data
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/503 for diagnosis of the heart
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/507 for determination of haemodynamic parameters, e.g. perfusion CT
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/5217 extracting a diagnostic or physiological parameter from medical diagnostic data
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/5288 involving retrospective matching to a physiological signal
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/54 Control of apparatus or devices for radiation diagnosis
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/566 involving communication between diagnostic systems
• CPC Class Codes: A61K 49/0002 General or multifunctional contrast agents, e.g. chelated agents
• CPC Class Codes: A61M 5/007 for contrast media
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/4808 Multimodal MR, e.g. MR combined with positron emission tomography [PET], MR combined with ultrasound or MR combined with computed tomography [CT]
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/5601 : involving use of a contrast agent for contrast manipulation, e.g. a paramagnetic, super-paramagnetic, ferromagnetic or hyperpolarised contrast agent
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/005 : Specific pre-processing for tomographic reconstruction, e.g. calibration, source positioning, rebinning, scatter correction, retrospective gating
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/008 : Specific post-processing after tomographic reconstruction, e.g. voxelisation, metal artifact correction
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0012 : Biomedical image inspection
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 20/17 : delivered via infusion or injection
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/20 : for handling medical images, e.g. DICOM, HL7 or PACS
• CPC Class Codes: G16H 30/40 : for processing medical images, e.g. editing

Abstract

Methods and systems for controlled administration of a tracer and quantification of uptake of the tracer by a target organ are described. The method includes administering a tracer to a patient and imaging at least two regions of the patient'"'"'s body that cannot be imaged simultaneously. An input function for the tracer can be determined by imaging a first region of the patient'"'"'s body during selected times, and using an injector to administer the tracer in a manner that accurately estimates the input function when this first region is not being imaged. One or more additional regions of the body may then be imaged to create data that may be used to estimate the input function. One or more parameters may then be estimated from each additional region of the body based on the input function and the imaging data gathered from each region.

Claims

1. A method for imaging tissue, the method comprising:

administering a tracer;

imaging at least two regions of a body, wherein the at least two regions of the body cannot be imaged simultaneously;

determining an input function for the tracer by imaging a first region of the body during selected times;

using an injector to administer the tracer in a manner that accurately estimates the input function when said first region is not being imaged;

imaging one or more additional regions of the body to create imaging data;

estimating the input function from all information gathered; and

estimating one or more parameters from each additional region of the body based on the input function and the imaging data gathered from each region.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein administering the tracer comprises bolus injection of the tracer.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein administering the tracer comprises slow injection of the tracer over a period of time.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the period of time comprises a time period selected from the group consisting of about 30 seconds, about 60 seconds, about 120 seconds, about 240 seconds, and about 360 seconds.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein administering the tracer comprises delivering the tracer over a time that is longer than an average circulation time of the tracer in a patient'"'"'s blood stream.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein administering the tracer comprises a bolus injection of a first amount of the tracer followed by an infusion of a second amount of the tracer.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the input function comprises determining a plasma concentration of the tracer in the first region of the body during the selected times.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein determining the plasma concentration of the tracer in the first region of the body during the selected times comprises determining a concentration of tracer for whole blood, determining a concentration of tracer for red blood cells, and subtracting the concentration of tracer for red blood cells from the concentration of tracer from whole blood.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising identifying a maximum blood value after administering the tracer and before determining the input function.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein determining the input function is carried out using only image data.

11. The method of claim 1, further comprising administering a second dose of the tracer.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the input function is estimated by a process selected from the group consisting of determining a plasma concentration of the tracer, determining a time required for the tracer to reach a patient'"'"'s heart after administration, determining a time required for spread of the tracer through a patient'"'"'s lungs, determining a transit time of the patient'"'"'s heart, determining a time and distribution of circulation or recirculation, determining uptake and metabolization rates of the tracer in various tissues, determining rates of removal of the tracer from a patient'"'"'s blood stream, determining absorption and elimination of the tracer in tissues and organs, determining diffusion rates into and out of blood cells, determining diffusion rates into and out of extravascular and extracellular spaces, determining diffusion rates into and out of cells, determining a time scale of an imaging system, and combinations of any thereof.

13. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining coordination times to optimize at least one PK/PD parameter associated with the imaging.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the coordination times are physiological event times, imaging acquisition times, first pass flow times of a drug, PK/PD phenomena times or combinations of any thereof.

15. The method of claim 1, further comprising utilizing iterative reconstruction techniques during analysis to at least partially compensate for one or more non-idealities or non-linearities in an imaging system.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising normalizing imaging data based on multiple input functions determined throughout a procedure.