EE4603 Biomedical Imaging

Systems

I - INTRODUCTION

Medical imaging aims to produce images (2D or 3D) of normal and

diseased tissue within the human body.
See into the body with minimal distress/inconvenience to the patient
Started in 1895, when Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen discovered x-rays.

The first radiograph:

Mrs Roentgens left hand

Over the next few decades, x-rays became a widely used diagnostic tool.
X-rays are suitable for
examining bone structure, e.g., fractures and breaks
investigating some tissue abnormalities

A new imaging option, computed tomography (CT), became available in the

early 1970s.
By combining a series of X-rays taken from different angles, computer
algorithms can reconstruct a 3-D image of any part of the body.

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) was developed in the 1980s. It is not

based on X-rays. The patient is subjected to a very strong magnetic field. A
radio signal is then applied, which triggers atoms in the body to send out
signals of their own. These radio signals are collected and processed to give
3-D images.

Ultrasound imaging was developed from sonar technology used during World
War II.
It obtains images by reflecting sound waves off tissues inside the body.

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In nuclear medicine imaging (NMI), a patient ingests or is injected with a slightly

radioactive substance. The distribution of the substance in the body can be
imaged to give an indication of pathological conditions, e.g., tumours and
increased metabolic activity.

In positron emission tomography

(PET), the radioactive substance
emits positrons.

In single-photon emission
computed tomography (SPECT), the
substance emits high-energy
photons (gamma rays).

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PET images

SPECT images

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PET/CT combines PET and CT imaging in a single gantry system:

- the two sets of images are acquired sequentially and merged into one
- metabolic activity can be correlated with anatomic structures

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Method

Parameters Measured

Medical Applications

X-ray, CT

Attenuation of photons

Anatomy, mineral content

MRI

Concentration of water,
physical and chemical
environment of the water
molecules

Anatomy, blood flow, chemical

composition

Ultrasound

Echoes returning from reflecting

surfaces of tissues

Anatomy, tissue structural

characteristics, blood flow

PET, SPECT

Concentrations of radioactive
isotopes

Metabolism, receptor site

concentration

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Fundamentals of Image Acquisition

The general imaging process is similar for the various modalities
Image formation
The first step in biomedical image formation occurs when some form of
energy is measured after its passage through and interaction with some
part of the body. The measured signal may be processed to give 2D/3D
images in digital format

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A digital image is an array (or

matrix) whose elements
denote the brightness (or
intensity) values. The
individual elements are
often called pixels.

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pixels

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The 3D image is comprised of a stack of these 2D images (or slices). A 3D

image element is called a voxel.

2D image

image slice
voxel

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Spatial resolution
This refers to the ability to see fine details. An imaging system
has higher spatial resolution if smaller objects in the image can be
viewed. (A quantitative measure of resolution uses the point spread
function, PSF.)

Highresolution
images

Low-resolution
images

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The limiting spatial resolution is the size of the smallest object

that is visible. This depends on the imaging modality as well as the
quality of the scanner.
Typical values:
X-ray
CT
US
MRI
PET

0.08 mm
0.25 mm
0.3 mm
1 mm
5 mm

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414 x 490

207 x 245
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The spatial resolution may differ for each orthogonal direction represented in a
volume or 3D image (anisotropic) or they may be equal (isotropic). We may
differentiate between the in-plane resolution and the through-plane resolution.

Throughplane res.
y
In-plane res.

Volume being
imaged

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The term spatial resolution is also used to denote the pixel size in a 2D
image (voxel size in a 3D image).
Consider a CT scan that is used to image a volume 500x500x500mm3.
If there are 200 slices and each slice is of size 256x256 pixels, then
through-plane resolution
in-plane resolution

= 500200 = 2.5 mm
= 500256 = 1.95 mm
256 columns

500 mm

200
slices

256 rows

2.5
1.95

500 mm

1.95

500 mm

Image volume

Image slice

One voxel

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Local contrast
Individual structures are recognized by local differences in signal strength
among adjacent structures. The visibility of a structure is related to its
contrast against the structures surrounding it.
good contrast
MRI

Signal magnitude
along dashed line

poor contrast
CT

poor contrast

good contrast

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The difference in intensity between the object of interest (e.g., a tumour

mass) and the surrounding tissue (the background) is measured by the
local contrast:
C=

st sb
sb

where
st = signal at the target
sb = signal at the background

st
sb
0

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Temporal resolution
Aperture time tap :
the amount of time it takes to capture the signal information to form one
set of images. A small aperture time will help to reduce motion artifacts.
Image repetition time tr :
The interval of time required to produce successive images. It is the time
needed to rest the imaging system to acquire another set of information
sufficient to form a new image. This limits the ability of the system
to acquire 4-D data sets, that is, 3D volumes through time.
tr
tap

tap = aperture time

tr = image repetition time
Time

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3D Visualisation
Medical visualisation can simplify the task of the radiologist by providing a
3D representation of the patient's anatomy constructed from the set of
image slices.
Blood vessels

Conventional view

Hand
Head

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