Factor analysis of dynamic scintigraphy structures. Application to kinetics of hepatobiliary tracers

The objective of the analysis method is to extract the spatial and dynamic components in a sequence of images. The factor extracted by the analysis represent all the significant information contained in the experimental data. The factor analysis results in the different groups studied present a good stability, rendering it most often possible to propose a satisfying physiological interpretation. In comparison to the method of regions of interest, the factor analysis method presents several advantages. It is an automatic method which can be used once the dynamic acquisition is achieved. This assures a gain in time and the assurance that acquisition was performed under good conditions. Factor analysis takes all the information in the gamma-camera field of view into account. Last but not the least, factor analysis leads to a remarkable result: it enables the components representing vascular, hepatic and biliary activities to be extracted, even if they are superposed. Factor analysis increases diagnostic security for problems normally resolved by hepatobiliary scintigraphy