| This research was aimed at investigating the potential of developing an optically coupled charge-coupled device (CCD) imaging system for some digital fluoroscopic applications. The viability of this concept for fluoroscopic imaging was studied with respect to image intensifier-television (II-TV) techniques. The anticipated advantages of the optically coupled CCD, compared with II-TV, include higher contrast sensitivity, larger dynamic range, moderate spatial resolution and clinically acceptable dose.; Following an investigation of some theoretical and practical issues concerning the optical coupling efficiency between the intensifying screen and the CCD imager, mathematical methods were developed to relate the signal, signal-to-noise ratio, and x-ray quantum efficiency of the optically coupled CCD imaging chain. The spatial resolution of the system was also analyzed. Using an ultra-sensitive CCD, as well as improved scintillating and optical coupling techniques, we built a laboratory system for experiments. We conducted measurements of the modulation transfer function (MTF), contrast sensitivity, contrast-detail detectability and detector contrast. The results suggest that the lesion detectability of our sub-optimal system was comparable to that of a screen-film technique under the same radiation dose, and was significantly better than II-TV fluoroscopy. Potential clinical applications of our system include mammography, pre-operational localization, pediatric chest radiography, and single tracer autoradiography. Images of selected phantoms, pathological specimens and small animals were acquired to demonstrate the radiologic quality attainable for such procedures.; We conclude that developing an x-ray quantum limited, pseudo-real time, digital fluoroscopic imaging system (for some applications) without an II appears to be theoretically and technically feasible. The successful development of optically coupled CCD fluoroscopy has the potential for improving the quality of many clinical procedures in radiology. |
