Effects of object‐to‐detector distance and beam energy on synchrotron radiation phase‐contrast imaging of implanted cochleae

Abstract

Summary Objectives To demonstrate that synchrotron radiation phase‐contrast imaging (SR‐PCI) can be used to visualize the intrascalar structures in implanted human cochleae and to find the optimal combination of the parameters object‐to‐detector distance (ODD) and beam energy (E) for visualization. Materials and Methods Three cadaveric implanted human temporal bones underwent SR‐PCI with varying combinations of parameters ODD (3, 2 and 1 m) and E (47, 60 and 72 keV). All images were then reconstructed to a three‐dimensional (3D) stack of slices. The acquired 3D images were compared using contrast‐to‐noise ratios (CNRs) of the basilar membrane (CNRitalicBM) and the electrode array (CNRE) and the standard deviation of the beam streaks (σS). Postprocessing calculations were performed using Matlab (Version 2017b, MathWorks Inc., Natick, MA, U.S.A.) with a standard significance level p < 0.05 to determine the most optimal combination of parameters. Results SR‐PCI with computed tomography reconstruction provided good visualization of the anatomical features of the implanted cochleae, specifically the exact location of the electrode with respect to the BM. A single‐factor ANOVA revealed a significant difference of variance for both CNRE and CNRBM, but failed to show significance for σS. A two‐sample t‐test failed to show any significant difference between CNRE columns of (3 m, 72 keV) and (2 m, 60 keV). The CNRBM was significantly different only at two pairs of columns, when (1 m, 72 keV) was compared against (2 m, 72 keV) and (3 m, 72 keV). Conclusions The results of this study show that SR‐PCI is a viable method to visualize implanted human cochleae. SR‐PCI is less invasive, less labour intensive and is associated with a much lower acquisition time compared to other methods for postimplantation imaging in humans, such as histological sectioning. We found that the optimal combination of E and ODD parameters was 72 keV and 2 m, respectively. These parameters resulted in high‐contrast images of the electrode as well as all internal structures of the cochleae. Lay Description Cochlear implants (CI) are currently the preferred method of treatment for hearing loss. Cochlear implantation surgery involves placement of a metallic, wire‐shaped electrode inside the cochlea, the main organ of the human hearing system. Knowledge of the exact location of the electrode after implantation is beneficial in improving the extent of restored hearing. Common clinical imaging modalities such as computed‐tomography (CT) are not ideal for providing such information, due to lack of resolution and streaking caused by the metallic electrode. Recent studies have developed algorithms to extract the electrode location from clinical computed‐tomography images and have been validated using histology or micro computed‐tomography (micro‐CT). Synchrotron radiation phase contrast imaging (SR‐PCI) is a high‐resolution imaging technique used to visualize small structures in three dimensions. Recently, SR‐PCI has been shown to be an alternative to histolog...

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