Gamma Camera Quality Control Essay Example for Free

Gamma Camera Quality Control riseQuality control focuses on detection of errors performance changes of da Gamma tv television television camera systems which may adversely sham nuclear medicine interpretation (Technical Standards Subcommittee, 19991). Based on already prescribed baseline conditions, routine taking into custodys argon conducted to ensure that the camera operated deep down the allowable limits. There are quite a number of factors which may contribute to final imaging quality of a gamma ray camera. These include resolution (intrinsic and energy), conformity, collimation and the spin for hard copy (Technical Standards Subcommittee, 19991).Additionally, various studies have suggested like other factors like count rate world power also run into image quality of gamma ray camera. Daily QC operations are practically limited to monitoring of parameters that are considered most sensitive to the performance of the system and those that are likely to affect nuc lear medicine studies. This experimental review focuses on critical quality control areas of gamma camera systems. These are background/taint check, flood field uniformity and spacial resolution (intrinsic/extrinsic) and finally the tout ensemble body scan resolution.The quality control is assisted by a SIEMENS ECAM gamma camera at the nuclear medicine department of Prince Wales Hospital. Background/contamination check This check aims to examine the gamma camera/scanning room contamination. It is recorded from the routine gamma camera QC tests. It is important to note that radionuclide contamination is not observable using naked human eye (NEMA, 1994). Such could result into the patient and the technicians subjection to change magnitude and unnecessary irradiation doses. Contamination results from an array of factors including container leakage, patient secretion and general accidents.Additionally, increased background radiation levels may result from hot patients proximity to u nshielded radiation from imaging devices (Busemann, Kugi Bergmann, 1993896). Potential penetration through the neck of the camera is also possible in much(prenominal) instances where high energy agents are used. When of sufficient intensity ? 500, it could potentially sacrifice imaging quality (Busemann, Kugi Bergmann, 1993896). several(a) researches have suggested that backgrounds with moderate elevation could potentially compromise intrinsic uniformity and other measurements. Results The results from the practical vest the background intensity at ?200-400 cps (monitor observation) The result falls within the accepted limits thus significantly represented good environment for quality imaging assuming all the other factors are unaffected. congruity Uniformity QC checks aims at ensuring that detectors responses to uniform radiation are kept uniform within specified limits. This is one of the basic QC tests in gamma camera applications. This is based on the fact that the camera is operated on the principle that observed differences originate from patient tracer distribution and thus the gamma camera induces no differences (NEMA, 1994).Defects in uniformity may be marked and focal for instance when photomultiplier tubes fail, and as a result of general uniformity degradation across the view field due to distorted spatial linearity/corrections for energy (Cranage Peake, 1979 81). When uniformity is checked using a collimator, it is referred to as an extrinsic uniformity check while in such instances when a collimator is not used, it is referred to as extrinsic uniformity check (Cranage Peake, 1979 81).