Compensation for patient motion in nuclear medicine renal studies by fast correlation image registration

Abstract

A computer method has been developed to compensate for patient motion which degrades nuclear medicine renal dynamic studies. The method is based on a fast correlation algorithm which accomplishes decoupling of the registration variables translation, rotation and scaling, and converts rotations into cyclic shifts using polar transformations of the images in the Fourier domain. The method has been implemented into a fully automated program which compensates for translational and rotational differences between images acquired while the patient was immobile and images acquired after the occurrence of motion. Preliminary results indicate the usefulness of the program as a clinical tool for salvaging renal scintigraphic studies with patient motion, thus preventing erroneous interpretations or repeat of the examinations.