Low radiation tomographic reconstruction with and without template information

TL;DR

This paper introduces new reconstruction techniques for low-dose tomography that incorporate noise modeling and prior template information, improving image quality while preventing bias from prior data.

Contribution

It proposes two novel noise-aware reconstruction methods and a template-based approach for longitudinal studies, along with techniques for automatic parameter tuning.

Findings

Prior information helps reduce low-dose artefacts.

Re-irradiation prevents bias from prior templates.

Automated regularization tuning improves reconstruction quality.

Abstract

Low-dose tomography is highly preferred in medical procedures for its reduced radiation risk when compared to standard-dose Computed Tomography (CT). However, the lower the intensity of X-rays, the higher the acquisition noise and hence the reconstructions suffer from artefacts. A large body of work has focussed on improving the algorithms to minimize these artefacts. In this work, we propose two new techniques, rescaled non-linear least squares and Poisson-Gaussian convolution, that reconstruct the underlying image making use of an accurate or near-accurate statistical model of the noise in the projections. We also propose a reconstruction method when prior knowledge of the underlying object is available in the form of templates. This is applicable to longitudinal studies wherein the same object is scanned multiple times to observe the changes that evolve in it over time. Our results on 3D data show that prior information can be used to compensate for the low-dose artefacts, and we demonstrate that it is possible to simultaneously prevent the prior from adversely biasing the reconstructions of new changes in the test object, via a method called ``re-irradiation''. Additionally, we also present two techniques for automated tuning of the regularization parameters for tomographic inversion.