Comparative Study of Image Quality in Head and Neck Cta with Different Scanning Modes and Different Reconstruction Methods

WANG Gang; YANG Zhong; CAO Qun

doi:10.3639/j.issn.2095-3097.2024.09.008

Abstract：Objective To investigate whether different scanning modes and reconstruction methods affect image quality in head and neck CTA examinations.Methods A total of 180 patients who underwent head and neck CTA examinations at Hefei BOE Hospital from June 2019 to May 2022 were selected.They were divided into Group A,Group B,and Group C based on different scanning methods,with 60 patients in each group.These three groups were further subdivided into nine subgroups ac-cording to various reconstruction techniques:A1,A2,A3,B1,B2,B3,C1,C2,and C3,with 20 patients in each subgroup.Patients in subgroups C1,C2,and C3 underwent ultra-fast Flash scanning mode,while patients in subgroups B1,B2,and B3 underwent CARE kV scanning mode,and patients in subgroups A1,A2,and A3 underwent conventional scanning mode.A1,B1,and C1 used Filtered Back Projection(FBP),A2,B2,and C2 adopted Statistical(Hybrid)Iterative Reconstruction(IR),and A3,B3,and C3 utilized SAFIRE iterative reconstruction.The mean arterial CT value,standard deviation(SD),signal-to-noise ratio(SNR),and contrast-to-noise ratio(CNR)of all images were measured and calculated.A 5-point scale was used for subjective scoring of all images,and the effective dose(ED)for all patients was measured and calculated.One-way ANOVA was performed on the SNR,mean CT value,CNR,SD,and subjective scores of patients across the nine subgroups.Additionally,the ED of different scan-ning modes was compared.Results The mean CT value,CNR,SNR,subjective score,and SD of images in subgroup A3 were higher than those in subgroups A2 and A1(P＜0.05).Similarly,these metrics were higher in subgroup B3 compared to subgroups B2 and B1(P＜0.05)and in subgroup C3 compared to subgroups C2 and C1(P＜0.05).Furthermore,subgroup C1 had higher values than subgroups A1 and B1(P＜0.05),subgroup C2 had higher values than subgroups A2 and B2(P＜0.05),and subgroup C3 had higher values than subgroups A3 and B3(P＜0.05).There was no statistically significant difference in ED among different scanning modes(P＞0.05).Conclusion In head and neck CTA examinations,different scanning modes and reconstruction methods yield variations in image quality.Ultra-fast Flash scanning combined with SAFIRE iterative reconstruction provides superior image quality,while radiation doses among different scanning modes are similar.