MODULAR DETECTOR SYSTEMS FOR MULTI-SLICE SPECT IMAGING

THE SIGNIFICANCE OF THIS PROJECT RELATES TO THE NEED FOR A HIGH-RESOLUTION SINGLE-PHOTON EMISSION COMPUTED TOMOGRAPHY (SPECT) IMAGING SYSTEM TO PERFORM FUNCTIONAL BRAIN IMAGING IN BOTH ACADEMIC CENTERS AND HOSPITALS. FOR MANY DISEASES INVOLVING DISTURBANCES IN BRAIN FUNCTIONS, SPECT IMAGING HASBEEN SHOWN TO PROVIDE DIAGNOSTIC INFORMATION THAT IS SIMILAR TO THAT OBTAINED FROM POSITRON EMISSION TOMOGRAPHY STUDIES BUT IS NOT AVAILABLE FROM OTHER ANATOMICALLY ORIENTED IMAGING TECHNIQUES. THE LONG-TERM OBJECTIVE IS TO DEVELOP A NEW TYPE OF SPECT SCANNER TO FULFILL THE COMMERCIAL AND CLINICAL NEED FOR HIGH-PERFORMANCE BRAIN IMAGING WITH THE NEW RADIOPHARMACEUTICALS IN A COST-EFFECTIVE MANNER. THE SPECIFIC AIMS IN THE PHASE I PROGRAM ARE FOCUSED ON THE DEVELOPMENT OF MULTICRYSTAL DETECTOR MODULES. TWO DIFFERENT MODULES ARE PLANNED. PRELIMINARY SIMULATION STUDIES HAVE SHOWN PROMISING RESULTS. DETAILED PROCEDURES ARE DEFINED TO EVALUATE THE TECHNICAL MERIT AND FEASIBILITY OF THIS MODULAR APPROACH TO COMPLEMENT THE DESIGN OF A CYLINDRICAL SPECT SYSTEM BEING DEVELOPED.