Method for constrained reconstruction of high signal-to-noise ratio images

摘要

A method for producing an image having a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is provided. An image to be enhanced is provided, the provided image including a previously reconstructed image or an image reconstructed from acquired image data. A prior image is produced from the provided image, for example, by filtering the provided image such that noise from the provided image is substantially suppressed in the prior image. Synthesized image data is produced by performing a forward projection of the provided image. A sparsified image is produced by subtracting the prior image and the provided image. A target image having a higher SNR than the provided image is reconstructed using the sparsified image, the provided image, and the synthesized image data. The provided image may be, for example, a medical image produced by an x-ray imaging system, including computed tomography and C-arm systems; a magnetic resonance imaging system; and the like.

主权项

1. A method for enhancing signal-to-noise characteristics of an image, the steps of the method comprising:
a) providing a previously reconstructed image to be enhanced; b) producing synthesized image data by performing a forward projection of the provided image; c) producing a prior image by filtering the provided image such that noise from the provided image is substantially suppressed in the prior image; d) subtracting the provided image and the prior image to produce a sparsified image; e) selecting an estimate image that is an estimate of an enhanced image having a higher signal-to-noise ratio than the provided image, wherein the estimate image is different than the provided image; and f) reconstructing the enhanced image by iteratively minimizing an objective function that includes a term containing the sparsified image and a term that includes a difference between a forward projection of the selected estimate image and the synthesized image data.