Equipment for Imaging by Spect and / or Pet
OwnerAdrianus A. Van Dulmen, Stephen Walrandinventors
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Abstract
The invention relates to an equipment for imaging a target organ in a small animal by SPECT, by using the LOrA technique, wherein each gamma detector of the imaging system comprises a plurality of sensitive crystals, curved to a segment of an essentially annular body, and a rake collimator with a small slit width.
Claims15
An equipment for imaging a target organ in a small animal by SPECT, comprising an imaging system and a table for an animal to be examined, said system comprising (i) a plurality of gamma detectors, essentially situated at the corners of a rectangle surrounding said table, wherein each gamma detector comprises a plurality of sensitive crystals in side by side arrangement and is provided on its front with a rake collimator, comprising two raised walls slanted towards the target to leave a longitudinal slit in between their top ends, and (ii) means for positioning said system relative to said table in two perpendicular directions, both transverse to the table length, to effect movements parallel and perpendicular to the table surface,
- said equipment being characterized in that each gamma detector comprises a plurality of sensitive crystals, each crystal tapering in one direction towards the table, so that said plurality of tightly joined crystals form a sensitive layer curved to a segment of an essentially annular body surrounding said table, and that the top ends of the raised walls of each collimator leave a longitudinal slit, parallel to the table length and with a width from 0.1 to 3 mm.
Equipment as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein the sensitive crystals have been manufactured from one or more of the following materials:
- CsI(Na), BGO, GSO, LGSO, LSO and CZT-crystals.
Equipment as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that the imaging system comprises means for moving the segments from and towards the table.
Equipment as claimed in any of the preceding claims, characterized in that the imaging system in addition comprises means for removing and reinserting said collimators from and into their positions in front of the gamma detectors, respectively.
Equipment as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein each gamma detector comprises a rake collimator comprising two raised walls, slanted inwards towards the target to leave a longitudinal slit in between their top ends, said rake collimator being characterized in that the top ends of the raised walls are provided with adjustable elements to leave a longitudinal slit with a width adjustable from 0.1 to 3 mm between their extremities.
Equipment as claimed in any of the preceding claims, wherein each gamma detector comprises a rake collimator of which the raised walls and the adjustable elements are from tungsten and each top end or element contains at its extremity a nose of iridium, gold or platinum.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.