Emphysema Quantification Using Ultra-Low-Dose Chest CT: Efficacy of Deep Learning-Based Image Reconstruction
Jeong-A Yeom,
Ki-Uk Kim,
Minhee Hwang,
Ji-Won Lee,
Kun-Il Kim,
You-Seon Song,
In-Sook Lee,
Yeon-Joo Jeong
Affiliations
Jeong-A Yeom
Department of Radiology, Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Yangsan 50612, Korea
Ki-Uk Kim
Department of Internal Medicine and Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Busan 49241, Korea
Minhee Hwang
Department of Radiology and Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Busan 49241, Korea
Ji-Won Lee
Department of Radiology and Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Busan 49241, Korea
Kun-Il Kim
Department of Radiology, Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Yangsan 50612, Korea
You-Seon Song
Department of Radiology and Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Busan 49241, Korea
In-Sook Lee
Department of Radiology and Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Busan 49241, Korea
Yeon-Joo Jeong
Department of Radiology and Biomedical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Busan 49241, Korea
Background and Objectives: Although reducing the radiation dose level is important during diagnostic computed tomography (CT) applications, effective image quality enhancement strategies are crucial to compensate for the degradation that is caused by a dose reduction. We performed this prospective study to quantify emphysema on ultra-low-dose CT images that were reconstructed using deep learning-based image reconstruction (DLIR) algorithms, and compared and evaluated the accuracies of DLIR algorithms versus standard-dose CT. Materials and Methods: A total of 32 patients were prospectively enrolled, and all underwent standard-dose and ultra-low-dose (120 kVp; CTDIvol Results: The mean effective doses for standard-dose and ultra-low-dose CT scans were 3.43 ± 0.57 mSv and 0.39 ± 0.03 mSv, respectively (p Conclusions: Ultra-low-dose CT images that were reconstructed using DLIR-low were found to be useful for emphysema quantification at a radiation dose of only 11% of that required for standard-dose CT.
