Description:

The aim of this study was to design an image restoration algorithm that combined denoising and deblurring and to confirm its applicability in positron emission tomography (PET) images of patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). PET images of patients with AD obtained using 18F-AV-45, which have a lot of noise, and 18F-FDG, which have a lot of blurring, were available in the Alzheimer's disease Neuroimaging Initiative open dataset. The proposed framework performed image restoration incorporating blind deconvolution after noise reduction using a non-local means (NLM) approach to improve the PET image quality. We found that the coefficient of variation result after denoising and deblurring of the 18F-AV-45 image was improved 1.34 times compared to that for the degraded image.

In addition, the profile result of the 18F-FDG PET image of patients with AD, which had a relatively large amount of blurring, showed a gentle shape when deblurring was performed after denoising. The overall no-reference-based evaluation results showed different results according to the degree of noise and blurring in the PET images. In conclusion, the applicability of the deconvolution deblurring algorithm to AD PET images after NLM denoising processing was demonstrated in this study. Alzheimer disease is a major public health concern in the elderly. In the United States, it is the fourth leading cause of death and is the most common cause of dementia. Although some cases of Alzheimer disease are caused by genetic mutations, most cases are probably due to a number of genetic and environmental factors. There is currently no cure for this serious and debilitating disorder. Alzheimer's disease is the commonest form of dementia. It is mainly found in older adults and increases markedly in prevalence in later life. It is characterized by progressive loss of intellectual function, most notably memory. Causes of Alzheimer's disease are not fully understood. At an immediate level it is due to cell loss, but the underlying cause is not known, although genetic susceptibility is suspected and a variety of environmental causes have been suggested. The Alzheimer's disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) is a multisite, longitudinal study that assesses clinical, imaging, genetic, and bio specimen biomarkers through the process of normal aging to mild cognitive impairment and dementia. We present the creation of the Argentina-ADNI—the first South American ADNI—and its effort to acquire data comparable with those gathered in other worldwide ADNI centres.

With Regards

Thomas
Journal Coordinator
Global Journal of Research and Review