22 Medical Imaging and Radiotherapy Journal (MIRTJ) 41 (Suppl. 1)
Medical Imaging and Radiotherapy Journal (MIRTJ) 41 (Suppl. 1)
VPLIV POLOŽAJA PACIENTOVIH ROK NA PRISOTNOST 
OKRNITVENEGA ARTEFAKTA PRI PET/CT PREISKAVAH
IMPACT OF THE POSITION OF A PATIENT’S ARMS ON THE OCCURRENCE OF TRUNCATION 
ARTIFACTS IN PET/CT IMAGING 
Danijel Serčić, Jelena Perić 
Onkološki inštitut Ljubljana / Institute of Oncology Ljubljana
Korespondenca / Corresponding author: dsercic@onko-i.si
Prejeto/Recived: 15. 1. 2024
Sprejeto/Accepted: 21. 2. 2024
IZVLEČEK
Uvod in namen: V slikovni diagnostiki pogosto ugotavljamo 
pojav artefaktov, zaradi katerih je preglednost slike slabša. 
Artefakt je motnja slike, kjer je prikazana struktura, ki 
ni dejansko prisotna na predmetu, ki ga slikamo. Med 
zajemanjem podatkov pri pozitronski emisijski tomografi ji/
računalniški tomografi ji (PET/CT) ima pacient med preiskavo 
roke nameščene nad glavo. V primerih, ko pacient ni zmožen 
namestiti rok nad glavo oziroma je zaradi klinične indikacije to 
potrebno, imajo pacienti med preiskavo roke ob telesu.
Namen raziskave je preveriti, ali obstajajo razlike v prisotnosti 
okrnitvenega artefakta v predelu komolcev na PET in CT slikah 
glede na položaj rok.
Metode: Izvedli smo primerjalno študijo. Spremenljivki, ki smo 
ju preverili sta prisotnost okrnitvenega artefakta na PET in CT 
sliki glede na položaj pacientovih rok. Podatke smo zbirali 
na Oddelku za nuklearno medicino Onkološkega inštituta 
Ljubljana. V analizo smo retrogradno vzeli priložnostni vzorec 
104 pacientov z indeksom telesne mase med 25 kg/m2 in 
30 kg/m2, ki so v letu 2023 opravili 18F-FDG (fl uorodeoksiglu-
koza) PET/CT preiskavo celotnega telesa. Za vsako preiskavo 
smo naredili tri postprocesing rekonstrukcije v transverzalni 
ravnini, v predelu komolcev. Prisotnost artefaktov so nato 
ocenjevali trije specialisti nuklearne medicine s pomočjo 
programa ViewDex 3.0. Zbrane podatke smo s X2 testom 
analizirali v programu SPSS Statistics 20.0. Pri testiranju 
raziskovalnih vprašanj smo upoštevali možnost napake 5 %.
Rezultati: Analiza podatkov je pokazala statistično značilen 
vpliv položaja rok na prisotnost okrnitvenega artefakta na PET 
(p=0,001) in CT (p≤0,001) slikah.
Razprava in zaključek: Prisotnost okrnitvenega artefakta je 
bila pri rokah, nameščenih ob telesu, v primerjavi z rokami, 
nameščenimi na pacientovem trebuhu, višja pri PET slikah za 
39,54 % in pri CT slikah za 37,14 %.
Ključne besede: artefakti, položaj rok, PET/CT
ABSTRACT
Introduction and purpose: In imaging diagnostics, we often 
fi nd the appearance of artifacts that can make the clarity of 
the image worse. Typically, PET/CT data acquisition takes 
place with the patient's arms placed above the head during 
the examination. In cases where the patient is unable to place 
their arms above their head or when it is necessary due to 
clinical indication, patients have their arms down.
The aim of the research was to check whether there are 
diff erences in the presence of a truncation artifact in the 
elbow area, depending on the arm position. 
Methods: The empirical part comprises a comparative study. 
The variables that we checked in the research were the 
presence of a truncation artifact on the PET and CT image.
The data necessary for the research were collected at the 
Department of Nuclear Medicine of the Institute of Oncology 
Ljubljana. Retrospectively, we took a random sample of 
104 patients with a body mass index between 25 kg/m2 and 
30 kg/m2 who underwent a total body 18F-FDG (fl uoro-
deoxyglucose) PET/CT examination in 2023. After accessing 
the data, we made three additional post-processing transverse 
plane reconstructions in the elbow area. The reconstructions 
were uploaded anonymously to the ViewDex 3.0 and 
evaluated by three nuclear medicine specialists. The collected 
data were analysed using the X2 test in the SPSS Statistics 20.0. 
We also considered a 5% possibility of error.
Results: The data analysis showed the statistically signifi cant 
impact of the position of a patient’s arms on the occurrence 
of a truncation artifact on PET (p=0,001) and CT (p≤0,001) 
images.
Discussion and conclusion: The presence of a truncation 
artifact was higher in PET images by 39.54% and in CT 
images by 37.14% for arms placed next to the patient’s body 
compared to arms placed on their abdomen.
Keywords: artifacts, arm position, PET/CT
Medical Imaging and Radiotherapy Journal (MIRTJ) 41 (Suppl. 1) 23
Medical Imaging and Radiotherapy Journal (MIRTJ) 41 (Suppl. 1)
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