Extension of the reconstruction field of view and truncation correction using sinogram decomposition

We propose a novel truncation correction algorithm that completes unmeasured data outside of the scan field of view, which allows extending the reconstruction field of view. When a patient extends outside the detector coverage the projection data are transversely truncated, which causes severe artifacts. The proposed method utilizes the idea of sinogram decomposition, where we consider sinogram curves corresponding to image points outside the field of view. We propose two ways to estimate the truncated data, one based on the minimum value along the sinogram curve, and the other based on the data values near the edge of truncation. Both estimation methods are combined to achieve uniform image quality improvement from the edge of truncation to the outer side of the extended region. In our evaluation with simulated and real projection data we compare the proposed method with existing methods and investigate the dependence on the amount of truncation. The evaluation shows that the proposed method handles cases when truncation is present on both sides of the detector, or when a high-contrast object is located outside the field of view. (c) 2007 American Association of Physicists in Medicine.