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Purpose: To investigate the efficacy of total prostate-specific antigen (tPSA) and free prostate-specific antigen (fPSA) for the estimation of prostate volume (PV) in pathologically-proven benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) patients. Methods: From January 2010 to March 2013, 165 Korean men with a PSA less than 10 ng/mL who were diagnosed without prostate cancer by prostate biopsy were enrolled. Patients were classified into three age groups: ≤60, 61–70, and >70 years old. The results were organized to estimate and compare the ability of serum tPSA and fPSA to assess the PV. Results: Enrolled patients had a median age of 63.5 years (44 to 80), a median tPSA of 5.72 ng/mL, a median fPSA of 0.98 ng/mL and a median PV of 53.68 mL, respectively. Among the associations between tPSA, fPSA, age, and PV, the highest correlation was verified between fPSA and PV (r=0.377, P

Purpose: Investigation of the influence of radiation dose to salivary glands on xerostomia in patients with head and neck cancers. Methods: From October 2002 to December 2011, 548 patients with head and neck carcinomas were treated in our department using intensity modulated radiotherapy (IMRT). 325 patients were eligible for analysis more than 1 year after irradiation. Xerostomia was evaluated according to the criteria of Radiation Therapy and Oncology Group (RTOG) and xerostomia related questionnaire. For statistical analysis grade 1 and 2 were recorded as mild and grade 3 and 4 as severe xerostomia. The dosimetric values for absolute mean dose, biological equivalent mean dose (EQD2), the relative organ volume not exceeding 20 Gy, 25 Gy and 30 Gy (V20, V25, V30) for all 4 major salivary glands or for both parotid glands only were used for analysis. V20 revealed the best discrimination between both patient groups (with vs. without xerostomia), compared to parameters V25 and V30. Therefore the volume of the salivary glands receiving less than 20 Gy (V 20Gy) was analyzed additionally. Mann-Whitney-U-test, Kruskal-Wallis-test and logistic regression were used in statistical analysis. Results: A TD 50 can be determined for the occurrence of xerostomia more than one year after radiotherapy for both parotid glands of 19.3 Gy for the mean dose absolute, 11.2 Gy for the mean dose EQD2, 38.2% for V20, 26.8% for V25, 18.7% for V30, 34.9 ml for V 20Gy. For all major salivary glands theses values were 25.7 Gy for the mean dose absolute, 15.6 Gy for the mean dose EQD2, 51.3% for V20, 41.1% for V25, 33.9% for V30 and 34.8 ml for V 20Gy. Conclusions: The identification of a tolerance dose for the salivary glands for treatment planning appears to be difficult, as the dose-response correlation only shows a flat slope. Additionally, a large interindividual variability seems to exist. We could not found any threshold dose for development of xerostomia.

This paper proposes a new method for mapping volume models of human organs onto a target volume with simple shapes. The proposed method is based on our modified Self-organizing Deformable Model (mSDM) which finds the one-to-one mapping with no foldovers between an arbitrary object surface model and a target surface. By extending mSDM to apply to organ volume models, the proposed method, called volumetric SDM (vSDM), establishes the one-to-one correspondence between the volume model and its target volume. At the same time, vSDM preserves geometrical properties of the original model before and after the mapping. In addition, vSDM allows to control the mapping of interior structures of the organ model onto specific regions inside the target volume. These characteristics of vSDM enables to easily find a reliable correspondence between different volume models via a common target volume.

In this study, we have developed a microfluidic device with metabolism function toward pharmacokinetic study. The device has reproduced physiological parameters such as an organ volume ratio and a blood flow ratio on a single-chip. The ratios have been reappeared by control of the area of cell culture chambers and a bypass channel, respectively. HepG2 (Liver model) and A549 (target model) have been co-cultured in each culture chambers in the device. In this paper, we performed a cell-based assay using prodrug CPT-11 that is metabolized to SN-38 by Carboxyl Esterase (CE) to examine functions of the device.

This paper proposes a new method for describing parenchymatous organs by the set of volumetric primitives with simple shapes. The proposed method is based on our modified Self-organizing Deformable Model (mSDM) which maps an object surface model onto a target surface with no foldovers. By extending mSDM to apply to organ volume models, the proposed method, volumetric SDM (vSDM), finds the one-to-one correspondence between the volume model and its target volume. During the mapping, vSDM preserves geometrical properties of the original model while mapping internal structures of the model onto their corresponding primitives inside of the target volume. Owing to these characteristics, vSDM enables to obtain a new volume representation of organ volume models which simultaneously (1) represents by simple primitives the shapes of the whole organ and its internal structures and (2) describes the relationship among the external surface and internal structures of the organ.

Insects are very convenient for studying the scaling of organs and tissues which is associated with extreme miniaturization: first, they have a huge range of body sizes (the largest is more than 2000 times as long as the smallest); second, the smallest insects are comparable in size to unicellular organisms but retain high morphological complexity. Most insect organs display a huge potential for scaling and for retaining their organization and sometimes even their constant relative volume in spite of their size decreasing to only a small fraction of its initial value. By contrast, the relative volume of the reproductive and nervous systems increases by a considerable factor as body size decreases.

Objective To assess the accuracy of a semiautomated 3D volume reconstruction method for organ volume measurement by postmortem MRI. Methods This prospective study was approved by the institutional review board and the infants9 parents gave their consent. Postmortem MRI was performed in 16 infants (1 month to 1 year of age) at 1.5 T within 48 h of their sudden death. Virtual organ volumes were estimated using the Myrian software. Real volumes were recorded at autopsy by water displacement. The agreement between virtual and real volumes was quantified following the Bland and Altman9s method. Results There was a good agreement between virtual and real volumes for brain (mean difference: −0.03% (−13.6 to +7.1)), liver (+8.3% (−9.6 to +26.2)) and lungs (+5.5% (−26.6 to +37.6)). For kidneys, spleen and thymus, the MRI/autopsy volume ratio was close to 1 (kidney: 0.87±0.1; spleen: 0.99±0.17; thymus: 0.94±0.25), but with a less good agreement. For heart, the MRI/real volume ratio was 1.29±0.76, possibly due to the presence of residual blood within the heart. The virtual volumes of adrenal glands were significantly underestimated (p=0.04), possibly due to their very small size during the first year of life. The percentage of interobserver and intraobserver variation was lower or equal to 10%, but for thymus (15.9% and 12.6%, respectively) and adrenal glands (69% and 25.9%). Conclusions Virtual volumetry may provide significant information concerning the macroscopic features of the main organs and help pathologists in sampling organs that are more likely to yield histological findings.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate automated CT volumetry in the assessment of living-donor livers for transplant and to compare this technique with software-aided interactive volumetry and manual volumetry.Hepatic CT scans of 18 consecutively registered prospective liver donors were obtained under a liver transplant protocol. Automated liver volumetry was developed on the basis of 3D active-contour segmentation. To establish reference standard liver volumes, a radiologist manually traced the contour of the liver on each CT slice. We compared the results obtained with automated and interactive volumetry with those obtained with the reference standard for this study, manual volumetry.The average interactive liver volume was 1553 ± 343 cm(3), and the average automated liver volume was 1520 ± 378 cm(3). The average manual volume was 1486 ± 343 cm(3). Both interactive and automated volumetric results had excellent agreement with manual volumetric results (intraclass correlation coefficients, 0.96 and 0.94). The average user time for automated volumetry was 0.57 ± 0.06 min/case, whereas those for interactive and manual volumetry were 27.3 ± 4.6 and 39.4 ± 5.5 min/case, the difference being statistically significant (p0.05).Both interactive and automated volumetry are accurate for measuring liver volume with CT, but automated volumetry is substantially more efficient.

OBJETIVO: Determinar valores de referência para o volume da placenta entre 7 e 10 semanas e 6 dias de gestação por meio da ultrassonografia tridimensional utilizando o método XI VOCAL (eXtended Imaging Virtual Organ Computer-aided Analysis). MATERIAIS E MÉTODOS: Realizou-se estudo de corte transversal com 70 gestantes normais entre 7 e 10 semanas e 6 dias. Para o cálculo de volume, utilizou-se o método XI VOCAL com delimitação de dez planos adjacentes. Foram determinadas médias, medianas, desvios-padrão, valores máximo e mínimo para o volume da placenta. Para avaliar a correlação do volume da placenta com a idade gestacional, foi criado gráfico de dispersão, sendo o ajuste realizado pelo coeficiente de determinação (R²). RESULTADOS: A média do volume da placenta variou de 4,6 cm³ (2,6-8,6 cm³) a 28,9 cm³ (11,4-66,9 cm³). O volume da placenta (VP) se mostrou altamente correlacionado com a idade gestacional (IG), sendo o melhor ajuste com a regressão exponencial [VP = exp(0,582 × IG + 0,063); R² = 0,82]. CONCLUSÃO: Valores de referência para o volume da placenta no primeiro trimestre de gestação utilizando o método XI VOCAL foram determinados. OBJECTIVE: To determine reference values for placental volume at 7 to 10 + 6 weeks of gestation by means of three-dimensional ultrasonography with the XI VOCAL (eXtended Imaging Virtual Organ Computer-aided Analysis) method. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was developed with 70 pregnant women at 7 to 10 + 6 weeks of gestation. The XI VOCAL method with ten sequential adjacent planes was utilized in the volume calculations. Means, medians, standard deviation, minimum and maximum values for placental volume were calculated. A scatter plot adjusted by the determination coefficient (R²) was constructed to correlate placental volume and gestational age. RESULTS: Mean placental volume ranged from 4.6 cm³ (2.6-8.6 cm³) to 28.9 cm³ (11.4-66.9 cm³). The placental volume (PV) has shown to be highly correlated with the gestational age (GA) and the best fit equation was [PV = exp(0.582 × GA + 0.063); R² = 0.82]. CONCLUSION: Reference values for placental volume in the first gestational trimester were determined with the XI VOCAL method.

OBJETIVO: Determinar valores de referência para o volume da placenta entre 7 e 10 semanas e 6 dias de gestação por meio da ultrassonografia tridimensional utilizando o método XI VOCAL (eXtended Imaging Virtual Organ Computer-aided Analysis). MATERIAIS E MÉTODOS: Realizou-se estudo de corte transversal com 70 gestantes normais entre 7 e 10 semanas e 6 dias. Para o cálculo de volume, utilizou-se o método XI VOCAL com delimitação de dez planos adjacentes. Foram determinadas médias, medianas, desvios-padrão, valores máximo e mínimo para o volume da placenta. Para avaliar a correlação do volume da placenta com a idade gestacional, foi criado gráfico de dispersão, sendo o ajuste realizado pelo coeficiente de determinação (R²). RESULTADOS: A média do volume da placenta variou de 4,6 cm³ (2,6-8,6 cm³) a 28,9 cm³ (11,4-66,9 cm³). O volume da placenta (VP) se mostrou altamente correlacionado com a idade gestacional (IG), sendo o melhor ajuste com a regressão exponencial [VP = exp(0,582 × IG + 0,063); R² = 0,82]. CONCLUSÃO: Valores de referência para o volume da placenta no primeiro trimestre de gestação utilizando o método XI VOCAL foram determinados.OBJECTIVE: To determine reference values for placental volume at 7 to 10 + 6 weeks of gestation by means of three-dimensional ultrasonography with the XI VOCAL (eXtended Imaging Virtual Organ Computer-aided Analysis) method. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was developed with 70 pregnant women at 7 to 10 + 6 weeks of gestation. The XI VOCAL method with ten sequential adjacent planes was utilized in the volume calculations. Means, medians, standard deviation, minimum and maximum values for placental volume were calculated. A scatter plot adjusted by the determination coefficient (R²) was constructed to correlate placental volume and gestational age. RESULTS: Mean placental volume ranged from 4.6 cm³ (2.6-8.6 cm³) to 28.9 cm³ (11.4-66.9 cm³). The placental volume (PV) has shown to be highly correlated with the gestational age (GA) and the best fit equation was [PV = exp(0.582 × GA + 0.063); R² = 0.82]. CONCLUSION: Reference values for placental volume in the first gestational trimester were determined with the XI VOCAL method.

Purpose To calculate the measurement error of the hourly fetal urine production rate (HFUPR) and evaluate the implication of different methods for measuring the HFUPR, i.e. ellipsoid versus sum-of-cylinders method. Methods The calculation was based on sonographic documentation of the increased bladder volumes during the filling phase, the bladder volume measurement error and the number and time points of bladder image capture. Results The probability of a false pathological reading was excluded (0%) with the sum-of-cylinders method for gestational ages of ≥30 weeks. With the ellipsoid method, the risk was higher. The maximum changes which could be exclusively explained by measurement error were four to five times greater with the ellipsoid method compared with the sum-of-cylinders method. Conclusions The present paper illustrates a careful evaluation of the HFUPR measurement error and the implications of using different ultrasound methods for bladder volume estimations. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s00404-009-1242-6) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.

The purpose of our study was to evaluate the interobserver variability of transrectal ultrasound for prostate volume measurement according to the prostate volume and the level of observer experience.Endorectal sonography was performed independently by two experienced observers in 101 patients and by one experienced and one less experienced observer in 110 patients; the prostate volume was then measured using the prolate ellipsoid formula. The volume difference between observers was analyzed according to the mean measured prostate volume determined by the observers and according to the level of observer experience.The volume difference was greater in prostates with a mean measured volumeor= 30 mL than in prostates with a mean measured volume30 mL (6.00 vs 1.51 mL in the experienced observers and 6.84 vs 3.99 mL in the experienced and less experienced observers) (p0.05). The frequency of volume differences5 mL was greater in prostates with a mean measured volumeor= 30 mL than in prostates with a mean measured volume30 mL (between the experienced observers, 18% vs 1%; between the experienced and less experienced observers, 54% vs 25%) (p0.01 in both comparisons). The volume difference was greater between the experienced and less experienced observers (5.00 mL) than between the experienced observers (2.96 mL) (p = 0.01). The frequency of volume difference5 mL was greater between the experienced and less experienced observers (35%) than between the experienced observers (7%) (p0.01).Prostate volume measurement by transrectal ultrasound may vary when patients have large prostates or observers have varying levels of experience.

We developed a novel digital tomosynthesis (DTS) reconstruction method using a deformation field map to optimally estimate volumetric information in DTS images. The deformation field map is solved by using prior information, a deformation model, and new projection data. Patients’ previous cone-beam CT (CBCT) or planning CT data are used as the prior information, and the new patient volume to be reconstructed is considered as a deformation of the prior patient volume. The deformation field is solved by minimizing bending energy and maintaining new projection data fidelity using a nonlinear conjugate gradient method. The new patient DTS volume is then obtained by deforming the prior patient CBCT or CT volume according to the solution to the deformation field. This method is novel because it is the first method to combine deformable registration with limited angle image reconstruction. The method was tested in 2D cases using simulated projections of a Shepp–Logan phantom, liver, and head-and-neck patient data. The accuracy of the reconstruction was evaluated by comparing both organ volume and pixel value differences between DTS and CBCT images. In the Shepp–Logan phantom study, the reconstructed pixel signal-to-noise ratio (PSNR) for the 60° DTS image reached 34.3 dB. In the liver patient study, the relative error of the liver volume reconstructed using 60° projections was 3.4%. The reconstructed PSNR for the 60° DTS image reached 23.5 dB. In the head-and-neck patient study, the new method using 60° projections was able to reconstruct the 8.1° rotation of the bony structure with 0.0° error. The reconstructed PSNR for the 60° DTS image reached 24.2 dB. In summary, the new reconstruction method can optimally estimate the volumetric information in DTS images using 60° projections. Preliminary validation of the algorithm showed that it is both technically and clinically feasible for image guidance in radiation therapy.

Because organ motion during a radiation treatment fraction can be substantial, with resultant alterations in organ volume definition and dosimetry, interventions to reduce the impact of intratreatment organ motion are required for many patients if dose escalation and reduction of dose to normal tissue are treatment goals. Before radiation delivery, fluoroscopy, cine computed tomography scans and magnetic resonance imaging can be used to measure the magnitude of organ motion for an individual patient. Strategies to minimize organ motion caused by breathing during radiation include altering breathing patterns, treating during voluntary or controlled breath holds, gating the radiation beam or tracking it with organ motion. Here the first 2 interventions will be primarily discussed. Approaches to minimize nonrespiratory organ motion include maintaining the same preparative regimen before each treatment and ensuring comfortable immobilization and short overall treatment time.

Administered dose of ionizing radiation during medical imaging is an issue of increasing concern for the patient, for the clinical community, and for respective regulatory bodies. CT radiation dose is currently estimated based on a set of very simplifying assumptions which do not take the actual body geometry and organ specific doses into account. This makes it very difficult to accurately report imaging related administered dose and to track it for different organs over the life of the patient. In this paper this deficit is addressed in a two-fold way. In a first step, the absorbed radiation dose in each image voxel is estimated based on a Monte-Carlo simulation of X-ray absorption and scattering. In a second step, the image is segmented into tissue types with different radio sensitivity. In combination this allows to calculate the effective dose as a weighted sum of the individual organ doses. The main purpose of this paper is to assess the feasibility of automatic organ specific dose estimation. With respect to a commercially applicable solution and respective robustness and efficiency requirements, we investigated the effect of dose sampling rather than integration over the organ volume. We focused on the thoracic anatomy as the exemplary body region, imaged frequently by CT. For image segmentation we applied a set of available approaches which allowed us to cover the main thoracic radio-sensitive tissue types. We applied the dose estimation approach to 10 thoracic CT datasets and evaluated segmentation accuracy and administered dose and could show that organ specific dose estimation can be achieved.

This chapter gives an overview of some of the important advances made in abdominal and pelvic magnetic resonance imaging. The chapter focuses on four specific areas in the body that have seen major advances in the last ten years; the gastro-intestinal tract, liver, kidney, and foetus and placenta in the female pelvis. It describes some of the MRI techniques utilised to measure organ volume, understand organ physiology and structure in health and disease, and determine potential disease biomarkers.

Aim: We aimed to investigate possibility of different ovarian volume threshold and to study diagnostic thresholds for polycystic ovary in Turkish women, since the literature on this subject is very limited. Material and Method: Clinical study carried out Namik Kemal University School of Medicine, Tekirdag, Turkey. This case-control study included 132 patients with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), diagnosed according to Rotterdam criteria and 75 controls. Comparison of ovarian volumes between PCOS patients and control group. Results: We found a mean ovarian volume of 9.44 +/- 4.3 cm3 in PCOS cases and 7.63 +/- 3.66 cm3 in control cases. The area under curve (AUC) for mean ovarian volume (MOV) was 0.633. The analysis showed that setting the threshold of MOV at 8.2 cm3 offered the best compromise between specificity (61.3%) and sensitivity (53.8%). Discussion: Optimum threshold of ovarian volume to distinguish the PCOS from normal women and the mean ovarian volume in Turkish PCOS patients remain beneath the criteria by Rotterdam.

Models of dose–response for environmental pollutants generally do not include explicit consideration of the stochastic nature of the spatial pattern of dose delivered to an organ or tissue, or the correlation between events leading to a final health endpoint (such as cancer). The result can be significant errors in risk calculations when these stochastic properties contribute as strongly to the dose–response relationship as do the dose–response relationships for individual cells. The present paper considers the issue of stochasticity of dose and events (initiation, promotion and inactivation) for the case of carcinogenicity following exposure to environmental pollutants, using the case of irradiation by high LET emitters such as radon and progeny from water or air. The model is based on the concepts of hit probabilities and effect-specific track length probabilities (probability of damage per unit track length), and is applied first to in vitro data and then to predictions in vivo. It is shown that inhomogeneity of dose throughout an irradiated tissue or organ volume, and correlation between initiation, promotion and inactivation, can lead to significant differences in predicted risk.

Purpose: Measurements of internal organ motion have demonstrated that daily organ deformation exists throughout the course of radiation treatment. However, a method of constructing the resultant dose delivered to the organ volume remains a difficult challenge. In this study, a model to quantify internal organ motion and a method to construct a cumulative dose in a deforming organ are introduced. Methods and Materials: A biomechanical model of an elastic body is used to quantify patient organ motion in the process of radiation therapy. Intertreatment displacements of volume elements in an organ of interest is calculated by applying an finite element method with boundary conditions, obtained from multiple daily computed tomography (CT) measurements. Therefore, by incorporating also the measurements of daily setup error, daily dose delivered to a deforming organ can be accumulated by tracking the position of volume elements in the organ. Furthermore, distribution of patient-specific organ motion is also predicted during the early phase of treatment delivery using the daily measurements, and the cumulative dose distribution in the organ can then be estimated. This dose distribution will be updated whenever a new measurement becomes available, and used to reoptimize the ongoing treatment. Results: An integrated process to accumulate dosage in a daily deforming organ was implemented. In this process, intertreatment organ motion and setup error were systematically quantified, and incorporated in the calculation of the cumulative dose. An example of the rectal wall motion in a prostate treatment was applied to test the model. The displacements of volume elements in the rectal wall, as well as the resultant doses, were calculated. Conclusion: This study is intended to provide a systematic framework to incorporate daily patient-specific organ motion and setup error in the reconstruction of the cumulative dose distribution in an organ of interest. The realistic dose distribution in an organ of interest gives the true dose–volume relationship, and may play an important role in the evaluation of the dose response of human organs. Dose reconstruction during the course of treatment delivery can also be used as an important feedback for the online optimization of individual treatment plans.

Rationale: The spatial distribution of blood flow in the hearts of genetically modified mice is a phenotype of interest because derangements in blood flow may precede detectable changes in organ function. However, quantifying the regional distribution of blood flow within organs of mice is challenging because of the small organ volume and the high resolution required to observe spatial differences in flow. Traditional microsphere methods in which the numbers of microspheres per region are indirectly estimated from radioactive counts or extracted fluorescence have been limited to larger organs for 2 reasons; to ensure statistical confidence in the measured flow per region and to be able to physically dissect the organ to acquire spatial information. Objective: To develop methods to quantify and statistically compare the spatial distribution of blood flow within organs of mice. Methods and Results: We developed and validated statistical methods to compare blood flow between regions and with the same regions over time using 15-µm fluorescent microspheres. We then tested this approach by injecting fluorescent microspheres into isolated perfused mice hearts, determining the spatial location of every microsphere in the hearts, and then visualizing regional flow patterns. We demonstrated application of these statistical and visualizing methods in a coronary artery ligation model in mice. Conclusions: These new methods provide tools to investigate the spatial and temporal changes in blood flow within organs of mice at a much higher spatial resolution than currently available by other methods.

Theory is presented for a differential mass-volume technique to measure non-destructively gas volume (Vg) changes, based only on the initial and final masses and volumes of an organ. Volume was measured using Archimedes' principle, but a non-invasive image analysis procedure could be an improvement. A reduction in Vg during the ripening of `Kada' tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill) fruits, and irreversible Vg changes of 0.02, 0.29, 0.66, 1.2, and 1.3 ml for mature-green fruits compressed by 0, 2.5, 5.0, 7.5. and 10 mm for 5 minutes indicates the potential of this procedure. The method was compared with other methodologies using sweetpotato (Ipomea batatas L.) root segments subjected to vacuum water infiltration. The results were similar to the pycnometric method. The gasometric method underestimated Vg for roots in which the intercellular air volumes where blocked by the water used for infiltration, and large overestimation occurred with the traditional infiltration technique without correction for water absorption. Absolute Vg values were also estimated by semi-pycnometry (defined as the difference between the organ volume measured by water immersion and the organ volume without Vg measured with a pycnometer, after its maceration and elimination of gas bubbles with vacuum). Semi-pycnometry applied to tomato and bell pepper (Capsicum annuum L.) fruits, where the use of tissue segments limits the pycnometric method, and in sweetpotatoes, where the gasometric method overestimates Vg, generated results that were consistently similar to the differential mass-volume method.

Micro-CT is widely used in preclinical studies of small animals. Due to the low soft-tissue contrast in typical studies, segmentation of soft tissue organs from noncontrast enhanced micro-CT images is a challenging problem. Here, we propose an atlas-based approach for estimating the major organs in mouse micro-CT images. A statistical atlas of major trunk organs was constructed based on 45 training subjects. The statistical shape model technique was used to include inter-subject anatomical variations. The shape correlations between different organs were described using a conditional Gaussian model. For registration, first the high-contrast organs in micro-CT images were registered by fitting the statistical shape model, while the low-contrast organs were subsequently estimated from the high-contrast organs using the conditional Gaussian model. The registration accuracy was validated based on 23 noncontrast-enhanced and 45 contrast-enhanced micro-CT images. Three different accuracy metrics (Dice coefficient, organ volume recovery coefficient, and surface distance) were used for evaluation. The Dice coefficients vary from 0.45 ± 0.18 for the spleen to 0.90 ± 0.02 for the lungs, the volume recovery coefficients vary from 0.96 ± 0.10 for the liver to 1.30 ± 0.75 for the spleen, the surface distances vary from 0.18 ± 0.01 mm for the lungs to 0.72 ± 0.42 mm for the spleen. The registration accuracy of the statistical atlas was compared with two publicly available single-subject mouse atlases, i.e., the MOBY phantom and the DIGIMOUSE atlas, and the results proved that the statistical atlas is more accurate than the single atlases. To evaluate the influence of the training subject size, different numbers of training subjects were used for atlas construction and registration. The results showed an improvement of the registration accuracy when more training subjects were used for the atlas construction. The statistical atlas-based registration was also compared with the thin-plate spline based deformable registration, commonly used in mouse atlas registration. The results revealed that the statistical atlas has the advantage of improving the estimation of low-contrast organs.

Optimizing targeted radionuclide therapy requires patient-specific estimation of organ doses. The organ doses are estimated from quantitative nuclear medicine imaging studies, many of which involve planar whole body scans. We have previously developed the quantitative planar (QPlanar) processing method and demonstrated its ability to provide more accurate activity estimates than conventional geometric-mean-based planar (CPlanar) processing methods using physical phantom and simulation studies. The QPlanar method uses the maximum likelihood-expectation maximization algorithm, 3D organ volume of interests (VOIs), and rigorous models of physical image degrading factors to estimate organ activities. However, the QPlanar method requires alignment between the 3D organ VOIs and the 2D planar projections and assumes uniform activity distribution in each VOI. This makes application to patients challenging. As a result, in this paper we propose an extended QPlanar (EQPlanar) method that provides independent-organ rigid registration and includes multiple background regions. We have validated this method using both Monte Carlo simulation and patient data. In the simulation study, we evaluated the precision and accuracy of the method in comparison to the original QPlanar method. For the patient studies, we compared organ activity estimates at 24 h after injection with those from conventional geometric mean-based planar quantification using a 24 h post-injection quantitative SPECT reconstruction as the gold standard. We also compared the goodness of fit of the measured and estimated projections obtained from the EQPlanar method to those from the original method at four other time points where gold standard data were not available. In the simulation study, more accurate activity estimates were provided by the EQPlanar method for all the organs at all the time points compared with the QPlanar method. Based on the patient data, we concluded that the EQPlanar method provided a substantial increase in accuracy of organ activity estimates from 24 h planar images compared to the CPlanar using 24 h SPECT as the golden standard. For other time points, where no golden standard is available, better agreement between estimated and measured projections was observed by using the EQPlanar method compared to the QPlanar method. This phenomenon is consistent with the improvement in goodness of fit seen in both simulation data and 24 h patient data. Therefore, this indicates the improved reliability of organ activity estimates obtained though the EQPlanar method.

Circulatory models for interpreting the kinetics of substances in vivo explain the kinetics of the intact body with the concepts of organ kinetics. In this paper, it is first shown that classical organ kinetic analysis is incomplete for metabolized substances, and an appropriate extension is developed. It is then discussed how the concepts of the extended organ kinetic analysis apply to circulatory models. At an organ level, it is shown that two impulse responses are necessary to characterize the organ, one relating influx and outflux, and one relating influx and uptake. The consideration of the inlet-uptake path is of fundamental importance for a correct calculation of the organ volume. It is demonstrated that the total volume is the sum of two components, the first related to the inlet-outlet path, the second to the inlet-uptake path. The first term is computable without assumptions, while the second is model-dependent. Analogous results hold at a total-body level. The relationships between circulatory models and compartmental and non-compartmental analysis are also precisely established. The significance of the non-compartmental estimate of the distribution volume is clarified. The usual strategy of compartmental modeling by which losses are placed in peripheral compartments according to a correspondence between tissues and compartments is shown to be misleading. An example concerning glucose kinetics is given. In conclusion, this paper shows that many of the dominating paradigms of organ and total-body kinetic analysis must be revised.

In targeted radionuclide therapy (TRT), dose estimation is essential for treatment planning and tumor dose response studies. Dose estimates are typically based on a time series of whole-body conjugate view planar or SPECT scans of the patient acquired after administration of a planning dose. Quantifying the activity in the organs from these studies is an essential part of dose estimation. The quantitative planar (QPlanar) processing method involves accurate compensation for image degrading factors and correction for organ and background overlap via the combination of computational models of the image formation process and 3D volumes of interest defining the organs to be quantified. When the organ VOIs are accurately defined, the method intrinsically compensates for attenuation, scatter and partial volume effects, as well as overlap with other organs and the background. However, alignment between the 3D organ volume of interest (VOIs) used in QPlanar processing and the true organ projections in the planar images is required. The aim of this research was to study the effects of VOI misregistration on the accuracy and precision of organ activity estimates obtained using the QPlanar method. In this work, we modeled the degree of residual misregistration that would be expected after an automated registration procedure by randomly misaligning 3D SPECT/CT images, from which the VOI information was derived, and planar images. Mutual information-based image registration was used to align the realistic simulated 3D SPECT images with the 2D planar images. The residual image misregistration was used to simulate realistic levels of misregistration and allow investigation of the effects of misregistration on the accuracy and precision of the QPlanar method. We observed that accurate registration is especially important for small organs or ones with low activity concentrations compared to neighboring organs. In addition, residual misregistration gave rise to a loss of precision in the activity estimates that was on the order of the loss of precision due to Poisson noise in the projection data. These results serve as a lower bound on the effects of misregistration on the accuracy and precision of QPlanar activity estimate and demonstrate that misregistration errors must be taken into account when assessing the overall precision of organ dose estimates.

Knowledge on the effects of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) on the intra-thoracic organs is limited. The present study was performed to investigate the effects of NPWT on the volume of the intra-thoracic organs, using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), in a porcine sternotomy wound model. Six pigs underwent median sternotomy followed by NPWT at -75, -125 and -175 mmHg. Six pigs were not sternotomised. MR images covering the thorax and heart were acquired. The volumes of the thoracic cavity, lungs, wound fluid and heart were then determined. The volumes of the thoracic cavity and intra-thoracic organs increased after sternotomy and decreased upon NPWT application. The total heart volume variation, which is inversely related to cardiac pumping efficiency, was higher after sternotomy and decreased during NPWT. NPWT did not result in the evacuation of wound fluid from the bottom of the wound. NPWT largely closes and restores the thoracic cavity. Cardiac pumping efficiency returns to pre-sternotomy levels during NPWT. This may contribute to the clinical benefits of NPWT over open-chest care, including the stabilizing effects and the reduced need for mechanical ventilation.

Some pathological conditions may affect osmolarity, which can impact cell, tissue, and organ volume. The hypothesis of this study is that changes in osmolarity affect the zero-stress state and mechanical properties of the aorta. To test this hypothesis, a segment of mouse abdominal aorta was cannulated in vivo and mechanically distended by perfusion of physiological salt (NaCl) solutions with graded osmolarities from 145 to 562 mosM. The mechanical (circumferential stress, strain, and elastic modulus) and morphological (wall thickness and wall area) parameters in the loaded state were determined. To determine the osmolarity-induced changes of zero-stress state, the opening angle was observed by immersion of the sectors of mouse, rat, and pig thoracic aorta in NaCl solution with different osmolarities. Wall volume and tissue water content of the rings were also recorded at different osmolarities. Our results show that acute aortic swelling due to low osmolarity leads to an increase in wall thickness and area, a change in the stress-strain relationship, and an increase in the elastic modulus (stiffness) in mouse aorta. The opening angle, wall volume, and water content decreased significantly with increase in osmolarity. These findings suggest that acute aortic swelling and shrinking result in immediate mechanical changes in the aorta. Osmotic pressure-induced changes in the zero-stress state may serve to regulate mechanical homeostasis.

A Korean adult male computational phantom was constructed based on the current anthropometric and organ volume data of Korean average adult male, and was applied to calculate internal photon dosimetry data. The stylised models of external body, skeleton, and a total of 13 internal organs (brain, gall bladder, heart, kidneys, liver, lungs, pancreas, spleen, stomach, testes, thymus, thyroid and urinary bladder) were redesigned based on the Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) adult phantom. The height of trunk of the Korean phantom was 8.6% less than that of the ORNL adult phantom, and the volumes of all organs decreased up to 65% (pancreas) except for brain, gall bladder wall and thymus. Specific absorbed fraction (SAF) was calculated using the Korean phantom and Monte Carlo code, and compared with those from the ORNL adult phantom. The SAF of organs in the Korean phantom was overall higher than that from the ORNL adult phantom. This was caused by the smaller organ volume and the shorter inter-organ distance in the Korean phantom. The self SAF was dominantly affected by the difference in organ volume, and the SAF for different source and target organs was more affected by the inter-organ distance than by the organ volume difference. The SAFs of the Korean stylised phantom differ from those of the ORNL phantom by 10-180%. The comparison study of internal dosimetry will be extended to tomographic phantom and electron source in the future.

Purpose of review Several technological advances have greatly improved three-dimensional sonography, which have improved acquisition and display capabilities. This review describes these technical changes as well as current applications of 3D sonography in prenatal diagnosis. Recent findings Recently published papers have emphasized the potential of getting a precise 'any plane of choice' from a three-dimensional volume, as a new way of scanning, based on the off-line analysis of a volume dataset. Surface mode has been used to demonstrate malformations and genetic diseases. The maximum rendering mode, which highlights bones, has great potential for imaging the nasal bones and the frontal bones with the metopic suture. Organ volume can be measured, but the utility of this in clinical practice remains to be determined. Three-dimensional ultrasound needs to be standardized. Summary Three-dimensional ultrasonography is the most rapidly developing technique in fetal imaging. New features will permit the transition from the era of 'sonography in two-dimensional planes' to 'volume ultrasound'.

Objectives: We sought to evaluate the capabilities of different magnetic resonance imaging (MRI)-based methodologies for measuring prostate volume. Materials and Methods: Twenty-four male beagles with benign prostatic hyperplasia were enrolled in a drug trial and imaged at 5 time points. A total of 120 prostate volumes were determined by MRI-based semiautomated segmentation. For planimetric assessment, 8 diameter locations were determined in the axial and coronal plane of the MRI slice with maximum extension of the prostate. Thirteen calculation models based on these diameters were determined by comparison to the reference volume and evaluated during treatment. Results: The segmented MRI prostate volume significantly correlated with post necropsy volume. The best diameter-based model also worked very well for monitoring prostate volume of dogs under treatment. Conclusions: MRI-based segmentation is highly accurate in assessing prostate volume. Diameter-based measurements are closely correlated to the segmented prostate volume and are feasible to monitor therapy.

▴ Miglustat is an orally administered ceramide glucosyltransferase inhibitor which prevents the lysosomal accumulation of glucocerebroside that occurs in patients with Gaucher’s disease. ▴ In noncomparative trials in patients with type 1 Gaucher’s disease, miglustat (50 or 100mg three times daily) for 6–12 months significantly reduced baseline liver and spleen volumes. At both 6 and 12 months, the reductions in organ volumes were greater with the higher dosage. ▴ Miglustat 50 or 100mg three times daily for 6–12 months had no significant effect on haemoglobin concentrations. Baseline platelet counts were not significantly improved by either dosage at 6 months, although the higher dosage significantly increased platelet counts at 12 months. ▴ In an open extension phase, patients continued to show further reductions in organ volume as well as significant improvements in haematological parameters at 24 and 36 months. ▴ In a 6-month randomised study in patients with type 1 Gaucher’s disease who had previously received long-term enzyme replacement therapy (ERT), liver volume reduction was greater with miglustat plus ERT than with ERT alone. ▴ Diarrhoea and weight loss were the most frequent adverse events associated with miglustat therapy. Fine tremor has been reported in approximately 30% of miglustat-treated patients.

To compare CT and MRI target volumes for nasopharyngeal carcinoma (NPC) and evaluate the role of intensity-modulated radiotherapy (IMRT) in treating composite CT+MRI targets.CT and T(1)/T(2)-weighted MRI scans were obtained for 8 consecutive NPC patients. Using CT, MRI, and fused CT/MRI, various target volumes (gross target volume, clinical target volume, and planning target volume [PTV]) and critical structures were outlined. For each patient, three treatment plans were developed: (1) a three-dimensional conformal RT (3D-CRT) plan using CT-based targets; (2) a 3D-CRT plan using composite CT+MRI targets; and (3) a IMRT plan using CT+MRI targets. The prescription dose was 57.6 Gy and 70.2 Gy to the initial and boost PTV, respectively. Treatment plans were compared using the PTV dose to 95% volume (D(95)), critical structure dose to 5% organ volume (D(5)), and mean dose.Compared with CT, the MRI-based targets were 74% larger, more irregularly shaped, and did not always include the CT targets. For CT-based targets, 3D-CRT plans, in general, achieved adequate target coverage and sparing of critical structures. However, when these plans were evaluated using CT+MRI targets, the average PTV D(95) was approximately 60 Gy (14% underdosing), and critical structure doses were significantly worse. The use of IMRT for CT+MRI targets resulted in marked improvement in the PTV coverage and critical structure sparing: average PTV D(95) improved to 69.3 Gy, brainstem D(5) to43 Gy (19% reduction), spinal cord D(5) to37 Gy (19% reduction), and the mean dose to the parotids and cochlea reduced to below tolerance (23.7 Gy and 35.6 Gy, respectively).CT/MRI fusion improved the determination of target volumes in NPC. In contrast to 3D-CRT, IMRT planning resulted in significantly improved coverage of composite CT+MRI targets and sparing of critical structures.

3D freehand ultrasound has extensive application for organ volume measurement and has been shown to have better reproducibility than estimates of volume made from 2D measurement followed by interpolation to 3D. One key advantage of free-hand ultrasound is that of image compounding, but this advantage is lost in many automated reconstruction systems. A novel method is presented for the automated segmentation and surface reconstruction of organs from sparse 3D ultrasound data. Preliminary results are demonstrated for simulated data, and two cases of in-vivo data; breast ultrasound and imaging of ovarian follicles.

Purpose: In this study, two commercially available programs were compared for the evaluation of delivered daily dose using cone beam CT (CBCT). Methods: Thirty (n=30) patients previously treated in our clinic (10 prostate, 10 SBRT lung and 10 abdomen) were used in this study. The patients' plans were optimized and calculated using the Pinnacle treatment planning system. The daily CBCT scans were imported into Velocity and RayStation along with the corresponding planning CTs, structure sets and 3D dose distributions for each patient. The organs at risk (OAR) were contoured on each CBCT by the prescribing physician and were included in the evaluation of the daily delivered dose. Each CBCT was registered to the planning CT, once with rigid registration and then again, separately, with deformable registration. After registering each CBCT, the dose distribution from the planning CT was overlaid and the dose volume histograms (DVH) for the OAR and the planning target volumes (PTV) were calculated. Results: For prostate patients, we observed daily volume changes for the OARs. The DVH analysis for those patients showed variation in the sparing of the OARs while PTV coverage remained virtually unchanged using both Velocity and RayStation systems. Similar results were observed for abdominalmore » patients. In contrast, for SBRT lung patients, the DVH for the OARs and target were comparable to those from the initial treatment plan. Differences in organ volume and organ doses were also observed when comparing the daily fractions using deformable and rigid registrations. Conclusion: By using daily CBCT dose reconstruction, we proved PTV coverage for prostate and abdominal targets is adequate. However, there is significant dosimetric change for the OARs. For lung SBRT patients, the delivered daily dose for both PTV and OAR is comparable to the planned dose with no significant differences.« less

Working with several mechanisms of critical local tissue damage, formulae are analytically derived that describe normal tissue complication probabilities (ntcps) for series-type radiotherapy complications arising in heterogeneous patient populations. Using the formulae, values are calculated for deltaD50(10)-the increase in dose leading to a 50% series-type complication rate (D50) when irradiated organ volume is reduced tenfold. From the structure of the ntcp formulae derived, it follows that dose-levels leading to clinically relevant serious complication rates (less than 5%) will change less with irradiated volume than will D50. Calculated values of deltaD50(10) for the heterogeneous series model are low-generally less than 6 Gy; such values are much lower than those calculated for the non-heterogeneous series model (27-37 Gy). These results suggest that if the dose-limiting toxicity of a radiotherapy treatment is a series-type complication with a local damage mechanism similar to any of those studied in this work, then even very substantial improvements in technique-leading to large reductions in highly dosed normal tissue volumes-would be unlikely to allow a useful degree of escalation of the dose delivered to the tumour, unless highly dosed normal tissue volumes can be reduced below the length-scale of a functional subunit.

Freehand 3D ultrasound is particularly appropriate for the measurement of organ volumes. For small organs, which can be fully examined with a single sweep of the ultrasound probe, the results are known to be much more accurate than those using conventional 2D ultrasound. However, large or complex shaped organs are difficult to quantify in this manner because multiple sweeps are required to cover the entire organ. Typically, there are significant registration errors between the various sweeps, which generate artifacts in an interpolated voxel array, making segmentation of the organ very difficult. This paper describes how sequential freehand 3D ultrasound, which does not employ an interpolated voxel array, can be used to measure the volume of large organs. Partial organ cross-sections can be segmented in the original B-scans, and then combined, without the need for image-based registration, to give the organ volume. The inherent accuracy (not including position sensor and segmentation errors) is demonstrated in simulation to be within +/- 2%. The in vivo precision of the complete system is demonstrated (by repeated observations of a human liver) to be +/- 5%.

The influence of organ volume sampling, lateral scatter inclusion, and the selection of objectives and constraints on the inverse treatment planning process with a commercial treatment planning system is investigated and suitable parameters are identified for an inverse treatment planning replacement of a clinical forward planning technique for prostate cancer. For the beam geometries of the forward technique, a variable set of parameters is used for the calculation of dose from pencil beams. An optimal set is identified after the evaluation of optimized plans that correspond to different sets of pencil beam parameters. This set along with a single, optimized set of objectives and constraints is used to perform inverse planning on ten randomly selected patients. The acceptability of the resulting plans is verified by comparisons to the clinical ones calculated with the forward techniques. For the particular commercial treatment planning system, the default values of the pencil beam parameters are found adequate for inverse treatment planning. For all ten patients, the optimized, single set of objectives and constraints results in plans with target coverage comparable to that of the forward plans. Furthermore inverse treatment planning reduces the overall mean rectal and bladder doses by 4.8% and 5.8% of the prescription dose respectively. The study indicates that (i) inverse treatment planning results depend implicitly on the sampling of the dose distribution, (ii) inverse treatment planning results depend on the method used by the dose calculation model to account for scatter, and (iii) for certain sites, a single set of optimization parameters can be used for all patient plans. PACS number(s): 87.53.–j, 87.90.+y

Members of one class of organs—including kidney and lung—consist chiefly of repeating units, or subunits, similar in size and shape. Across species, both the number and size of repeating units may increase with increasing organ size. A simple model is proposed, relating the scaling of unit-size and unit-number to that of organ volume. The model makes three structural assumptions, the crucial one, biologically speaking, being that the numerical density of repeating units scales as does organ surface-to-volume ratio. Data were collected from the literature bearing on the number, diameter, total surface area and total volume of such repeating units (i.e., alveoli, air capillaries, renal tubules and glomeruli), for avian and mammalian lung and for mammalian kidney, each as a function of organ size. These data, after log-log transformation, were submitted to standard linear least squares regression analysis. The resultant slopes for nine different regression lines are in good agreement with the model predictions. This finding suggests, surprisingly, that organ scale-up, at least for selected organs, expressed in terms of repeating units, as a function of organ volume, in mammals and birds, and conceivably in other phyla, may be based on a small number of elementary structural principles.

RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES A radiologist often wishes to measure organ volume or monitor changes in internal lesion volume during treatment. If this can be determined via three-dimensional ultrasound, the relative simplicity of the procedure and the decreased cost and known risks to the patient would make this method an attractive alternative to other modalities. METHODS Three-dimensional ultrasound scans were made of six phantoms: four nonechogenic spheres, one echogenic sphere, and one echogenic, irregularly shaped phantom. A total of 22 volume scans were produced. Volume estimations were made using data from cross-sectional areas and from linear measurements. In all, 193 volume estimations were made. These results were compared with known volumes and with volume estimates from computed tomography scans. RESULTS Three-dimensional ultrasound detected size differences of 10% with 95% certainty. CONCLUSIONS The accuracy and precision of volume estimates via three-dimensional ultrasound is at least as good as those obtained via conventional ultrasound.