NM QC

Question 1

What is NM QA?

Answer 1

The overarching nuclear medicine system which ensures quality of outcome

Includes:
Education
Medicines / radiopharmacy
Equipment

Question 2

What is QC?

Answer 2

Specification, assessment, optimisation and maintenance of a particular aspect – e.g. equipment

Question 3

What are the principles of QC?

Answer 3

Establish: critical parameters, methods, action levels, frequency, sys of work

Carry out: action response, carry out protocols, reactive action, investigations

Question 4

Critical Imaging parameter planar:

Answer 4

Resolution: Spatial/Energy

Uniformity, linearity, sens, leakage

Question 5

Critical Imaging parameter SPECT:

Answer 5

Coll hole angulation, uniformity, CoR, SPECT res, overall quality

SPECT CT: CT QC + Registration

Question 6

Acceptance and routine tests

Answer 6

NEMA, elec, safety establish QC program

Question 7

Daily SPECT

Answer 7

Photo peak position

Intrinsic uniformity flood - vis and quant

Question 8

Monthly SPECT

Answer 8

Uniformity (higher count)
Sensitivity
Resolution
Centre of rotation
Tomographic performance with phantom

Question 9

Uniformity measures (6)

Answer 9

System - Flood
Intrinsic - Point source
Integral - CoV / min/max - UFOV / CFOV
Differential
SPECT
Whole body - different isotopes

Question 10

How is daily uniformity tested?

Answer 10

1 Remove collimator

2 Use point source with about 0.6 MBq positioned between detector heads
64x64 matrix

3 Acquire 10 million count acquisition

4 Calculate integral and differential non uniformity

Create via corr matrix

Question 11

Resolution tests

Answer 11

•System
Line source
Phantom
•Intrinsic
Line source
Phantom
•Quantitative
•Qualitative
•Planar
•SPECT

Question 12

PET Acceptance tests (EANM)

Answer 12

• Physical inspection
• Computer clock
• Sensitivity
• Uniformity
• Spatial resolution
• Count rate performance
• Image quality

Question 13

Example PET routine tests

Answer 13

Daily: Physical inspection, Background count rate, Detector check

Weekly: Energy resolution

Monthly: Calibration

Quarterly: Spatial resolution, Sensitivity, Image quality

Annual: Uniformity

Question 14

Types of PET events

Answer 14

All coincidences have to be within energy acceptance window and time co-incidence window

True events: due to a single event on a line between the two point of detection

Scattered events: incorrectly placed as one or both photon are scattered prior to detection

Random coincidences: arise from 2 separate events

Question 15

What is the noise equivalent count rate?

Answer 15

Count rate to obtain the same SNR in the absence of scatter and randoms

Scatter fraction: The fraction of total co-incidences in the photo-peak window that have been scattered.

Question 16

Scatter / Count testing process PET

Answer 16

Cylindrical phantom with a small tube containing F18 which is allowed to decay and make repeated measurements