Implementation of an accelerated iterative algorithm for cone-beam SPECT

In this paper we describe the implementation of an accelerated iterative reconstruction algorithm (AIRA) for cone-beam (CB) projections using a single circular orbit in single photon-emission computed tomography (SPECT). This algorithm is a modified maximum likelihood-expectation-maximization (ML-EM) algorithm and several approaches have been used to accelerate the reconstruction process. These approaches include: (i) the use of ordered subsets; (ii) the use of active areas and volumes; and (iii) the storing in memory of the transition vector for a given ray (during the forward projection step). This algorithm, which compensates for collimator geometric sensitivity variation as a function of position and makes uniform attenuation corrections has been evaluated using experimentally acquired phantom data. The results demonstrate a two-orders-of-magnitude decrease of the computational time of this algorithm over the conventional ML-EM algorithm with similar convergence properties. (Author)