At UW, we are outspoken for our support of adaptive statistical iterative reconstruction (ASIR).  As a big proponent of the method, I find this write-up from Radiology to be a landmark article, and the research it highlights, very impressive work.

A team of researchers recently confirmed that iterative reconstruction allows significant CT radiation dose reductions for patients undergoing urolithiasis imaging, without unintended decreased image quality or diagnostic confidence.

Urolithiasis is a common condition, with high likelihood (estimated at 75 percent) of recurrence amongst individuals diagnosed. Therefore, imaging scans are a regularity for those patients with the disease. It is important to treat these patients with the lowest radiation dose possible, as to alleviate fear of potentially excessive radiation.

For the 25 patients involved in the study, image quality was significantly boosted by adding iterative reconstruction, while dose was reduced by about 85 percent, thanks to the ultra-low dose. While previous studies report substantial degradations in imaging quality, 80 percent of the images acquired in this study had suboptimal image quality.

This study is just further evidence of the promising benefit of ASIR. I firmly believe that every imaging site with access to the protocol should use it regularly as to lower dose by 80 percent in frequently performed exams.

To learn more about iterative reconstruction, please click here!