Method to compute and present brain amyloid in gray matter

• US 9,585,567 B2
• Filed: 11/13/2012
• Issued: 03/07/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 11/16/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips N.V.
• Inventors: Thiele, Frank Olaf, Wenzel, Fabian
• Primary Examiner(s): Roy, Baisakhi
• Application Number:
  US14/355,599
• Publication Number:
  US 20140257084A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,575 Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0035 adapted for acquisition of images from more than one imaging mode, e.g. combining MRI and optical tomography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/0042 for the brain
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 5/055 involving electronic [EMR] or nuclear [NMR] magnetic resonance, e.g. magnetic resonance imaging
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/037 Emission tomography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/466 adapted to display 3D data
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/501 for diagnosis of the head, e.g. neuroimaging or craniography
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 6/5247 combining images from an ionising-radiation diagnostic technique and a non-ionising radiation diagnostic technique, e.g. X-ray and ultrasound
• CPC Class Codes: G01R 33/481 MR combined with positron emission tomography [PET] or single photon emission computed tomography [SPECT]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10088 Magnetic resonance imaging [MRI]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/10104 Positron emission tomography [PET]
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30016 Brain
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0012 Biomedical image inspection
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0014 using an image reference approach

Abstract

An imaging work station (20) includes one or more processors programmed to receive (170) an image depicting a distribution of a radiotracer in a brain or other region of interest. The radiotracer includes at least one of [18F]-Flutemetamol, [18F]-Florbetaben, and [18F]-Florbetapir which highlights amyloid deposits. The image and a template or an MRI image of the region of interest which includes a segmented anatomical feature, such as gray matter, are registered (180) to a common space. A volume representation of the image which depicts the distribution of the radiotracer in the segmented gray matter and suppresses the radiotracer outside of the segmented anatomical feature in white matter is extracted (210).

Claims

1. An imaging work station comprising:

one or more processors programmed to;

receive an image depicting a distribution of a radiotracer in a region of interest that includes the brain;

register the image to a common space defined by a template or an MRI image of the region of interest, the common space including a segmented anatomical feature representing a probability that each voxel is gray matter; and

extract a volume representation of the image which depicts the distribution of the radiotracer in the segmented anatomical feature and suppresses the radiotracer outside of the segmented anatomical feature by combining each voxel of the image with the probability of the voxel being gray matter as represented by the registered common space.

2. The imaging work station according to claim 1, wherein the radiotracer highlights amyloid deposits.

3. The imaging work station according to claim 1, wherein the radiotracer includes at least one of [18F]-Flutemetamol, [18F]-Florbetaben, and [18F]-Florbetapir.

4. The imaging work station according to claim 1, wherein the processor is further programmed to:

calculate a surface projection image by projecting voxel values of the volume representation onto a brain surface.

5. The imaging work station according to claim 1, wherein the processor is further programmed to:

statistically map at least one of the volume representation and the surface projection comparing each voxel with images from a group of subjects with a well-defined status.

6. The imaging work station according to claim 1, wherein the processor is further programmed to:

receive a magnetic resonance image;

segment the anatomical feature in the magnetic resonance image; and

register the segmented anatomical feature to the common space.

7. The imaging work station according to claim 1, further including:

a display device which displays a representation of the distribution of the radiotracer in the anatomical feature.

8. The imaging work station according to claim 1, wherein the imaging work station receives images from at least one of a positron emission tomography (PET) scanner, and a magnetic resonance (MR) scanner.

9. A method for brain imaging comprising:

receiving at least one image depicting a distribution of a radiotracer in a region of interest that includes the brain;

with one or more processors;

registering the image to a common space defined by a template of the region of interest, the common space including a segmented anatomical feature representing a probability that each voxel is gray matter; and

extracting a volume representation of the image which depicts the distribution of the radiotracer in the segmented anatomical feature and suppresses the radiotracer outside of the segmented anatomical feature by combining each voxel of the image with the probability of the voxel being gray matter as represented by the registered common space.

10. The method for brain imaging according to claim 9, wherein the radiotracer highlights amyloid deposits.

11. The method for brain imaging according to claim 9, wherein the radiotracer includes at least one of [18F]-Flutemetamol, [18F]-Florbetaben, and [18F]-Florbetapir.

12. The method for brain imaging according to claim 9, further including:

calculating a surface projection image by projecting voxel values of the volume representation onto a brain surface.

13. The method for brain imaging according to claim 9, further including:

statistically mapping at least one of the volume representation or the surface projection comparing each voxel with images from a group of subjects with a well-defined status.

14. The method for brain imaging according to claim 9, further including:

receiving a magnetic resonance image;

segmenting the magnetic resonance image by the anatomical feature; and

registering the segmented anatomical feature to the common space.

15. A non-transient computer readable medium carrying software which control one or more processors to perform the method of claim 9.

16. An imaging work station comprising:

one or more processors programmed to;

receive a positron emission tomography (PET) or single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) brain image depicting a distribution of a radiotracer in a region of interest of the brain wherein the radiotracer is taken up by both gray matter and white matter;

register the brain image to a common space defined by a template or an MRI image of the region of interest which includes a segmented anatomical feature that represents probability that each voxel is gray matter; and

combine each voxel of the registered brain image with the probability of the voxel being gray matter as represented by the segmented anatomical feature of the template or MRI image to extract a volume representation of the brain image which depicts the distribution of the radiotracer in gray matter and suppresses the distribution of the radiotracer in white matter.