Correction of Partial Volume Effect Using CT Images in Brain 18F-FDG PET

Purpose: We performed partial volume effect correction of PET images using 18F-FDG-PET and CT images taken consecutively, compared it with correction using MRI images, and investigated the usefulness of correction using CT images. Methods: A total of 9 clinically normal subjects were included in the study, and the CT and MRI images of each subject were segmented and normalized. PET images were coregistered to each morphological image and then normalized. The normalized morphological images of each subject were used to mask the brain atlas and to correct for the partial volume effect. For each brain region, comparison of counts, two-group test between CT- and MRI-corrected groups, and correlation analysis were performed. Results: As a result of correction, some error was observed between the two groups. Correlation analysis showed strong positive correlations in many areas, but weak correlations were found in some areas. In the region where significant differences were found, the two groups showed strong positive correlation, and in the region where weak correlation was found, the error tended to be small. Conclusion: It is suggested that the correction by CT can be performed with the same accuracy, although some errors are generated compared with MRI.