Patent ID: 7187745
Filing Date: 2007-03-06
Classification: A61B

Abstract:
1. A method for generating a computed tomography image of a periodically moving organ of an organism, wherein the organ comprises a plurality of different regions each having a rest phase and a movement phase, with the respective rest phases of different ones of said regions ensuing at different points in time, comprising the steps of: (a) emitting an x-ray beam from a focus of an x-ray source and rotating at least said focus around said organ to irradiate said organ from a plurality of different directions, and detecting x-rays in said x-ray beam attenuated by said organ at each of said directions, to obtain a plurality of sets of projection data of said organ in rapid succession, each set of projection data representing a test image of said organ, during at least one rotation of said focus around said organ and during a duration that is at least equal to one period of the periodic movement of the organ; (b) analyzing said sets of projection data to determine whether the projection data in each test image were acquired during a rest phase or during a movement phase of only one of said regions of said organ by detecting movement artifacts in an image region of each test image containing said one region of said organ, and designating projection data in respective test images that are free of movement artifacts as having been acquired during the rest phase of said one of said regions; and (c) reconstructing a diagnostic image of said organ using only projection data from said test images acquired during the respective rest phase of said one of said regions of said organ.