Enhancing Diagnostic Precision by Image Processing in \(\gamma\)-Camera Scintigraphy for Lower Extremity Inflammation

Abstract

The present study highlights the improvement of evaluation of the inflammation extent on the scintigraphic imaging, by utilizing statistical indices (Inflammation Projection Ratio - IPR, skewness, kurtosis and Mean Pixel Value - MPV). Inflammatory processes and infection imaging are forms of tissue characterization by Nuclear Medicine. Image analysis was performed by means of an Interactive Data Language (IDL) tool. Twelve patients were referred for a radionuclide (Tc99m- Leukoscan) scan, by a GE Healthcare gamma camera, on the suspicion of an infectious lesion in the extremities. The findings of the study are that pathological tissues have a higher IPR index (3.12 to 4.32) compared to normal tissue (~ 1). The calculated indices IPR in combination with the processed Isocontouring images, contribute to the conclusion that Tc99m- Sulesomab scintigrams are characterized by high projection ratios specific for each case and demonstrate the full extent of the inflamed area in the lower extremities, with great accuracy. Furthermore, MPV, skewness and kurtosis differ significantly (> 5%) from normal to inflammable extremities. As a conclusion, image processing provides effective information in the structure and facilitates diagnosis semi-quantitatively. Moreover, increased imaging research and discussed the limitations of the study, such as the need for a larger sample size.