PHYSICAL BASIS OF DIAGNOSTIC IMAGING
- Overview
- Assessment methods
- Learning objectives
- Contents
- Full programme
- Bibliography
- Delivery method
- Teaching methods
- Contacts/Info
To better understand the topics covered in the course, it is advisable that students possess bases of physics on ionizing and non-ionizing radiation and their interactions with matter.
The final examination is an oral one. The exam intends to verify:
- the level of the knowledge acquired by the student in the different topics of the course
- the capability of analyzing the physical principles in the main types of imaging used in modern medicine.
To pass the exam, the student has to present the main topic in a satisfactory way, with an adequate language, demonstrating a satisfactory comprehension of the features of many different types of medical imaging techniques.
To successfully pass the exam students should know in-depth way the topics treated in the course, demonstrating to be able to re-elaborate concepts, and to establish connections and comparisons.
The course of Physical Basis of Diagnostic Imaging provides an overview of the various equipment used in the medical field and aims to provide the knowledge of the physical principles which are used in the different methods of diagnostic imaging with particular attention to advanced technology of morphological and molecular analysis.
The goal is to explain the physical principles governing the medical imaging and to illustrate the multiplicity and the peculiarities of the different production methods of the images that exploit the interaction of ionizing and non-ionizing radiation with the structures of the human body to be surveyed.
The course also aims to provide an understanding of quality control techniques of the methodologies used in diagnostic systems, with the deepening of specific issues regarding the technical management and processing characteristics of digital medical imaging.
At the end of the course, students will be able to:
- describe the use of imaging modalities and processes to get pictures of the human body, which can assist the diagnosis and the treatment of the patient
- explain the many different types of medical imaging techniques, which use different technologies to produce images for different purposes
- discuss the physical principles in the main types of imaging used in modern medicine ( radiography, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), nuclear medicine, and ultrasound).
The course program includes a section on the human visual system and an introduction to the physics of medical images, with a brief historical reminder and an overview of the different diagnostic methods developed until now.
For an analytical description of the image quality the main descriptive physical parameters of medical images and a comparison between analog and digital images are presented.
Historically the discussion on the multiplicity of imaging methods begins by considering diagnostic radiology with X-rays and image receptors, understanding the application in mammography and computed tomography.
Then the physical characteristics of ultrasound equipment, systems of magnetic resonance and diagnostic nuclear medicine techniques are shown.
With regard to the nuclear medicine and molecular imaging SPECT (Single Photon Emission Computed Tomography) and PET (Positron Emission Tomography) equipment, the radiometabolic therapy and radiopharmaceuticals used are presented. Concerning diagnostic ultrasound imaging, the basic technology of Ultrasound and Doppler flowmetry is described.
The physical principles and the process of formation of images in MRI, the main components of a MR system and the safety aspects for patients and workers are also presented.
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The following texts are used during the course:
- Steve Webb: The physics of medical imaging. Institute of Physics Publishing, Bristol and Philadelphia, 1992.
- William R. Hendee and E. Russell Ritenour Medical Imaging Physics. 2002 Wiley-Liss, Inc.
- slides of the lessons and article provided by the teacher
The educational activities comprise mainly lectures on various topics, and the use of examples and exercises.
There will also be guided tours of the hospital wards with the Imaging Systems presented during the course and some specific seminars by various sector specialists.
For questions/comments students are invited to directly contact the teacher by e-mail at the following address: marco.cacciatori@asst-lariana.it or marco.cacciatori@uninsubria.it.