Performance evaluation of a multipinhole small animal SPECT system

We have designed and constructed a small animal SPECT system based on compact, high resolution detectors and multipinhole apertures. The scanner is currently configured with two detectors mounted on a rotating gantry. Each detector comprises a NaI(TI) crystal array (1x1x5 mm elements), a 12 cm diameter position-sensitive photomultiplier tube (Hamamatsu R3292) and a tungsten aperture with I or more pinholes. In this study, we performed phantom experiments to characterise the planar and tomographic performance of the scanner. Intrinsic resolution measured with a highly collimated Tc-99m point source stepped across the detector face was 1.0+/-0.1 mm FWHM and 2.9+/-0.1 mm FWTM. Energy resolution at 140 keV varied from 14% FWHM for central crystals to 19% for edge crystals and was 20% FWHM for the whole detector normalised spectrum. Intrinsic uniformity for the central field of view was 2.4% differential And 3.8% integral. Reconstructed spatial resolution was 1.2 mm FWHM at the centre of the field of view and 1.2, 1.7 mm FWHM (radial, tangential) at 10 mm off-axis, using typical geometric parameters for mouse and rat brain imaging. Reconstructed images of a micro deluxe hot rod phantom demonstrate the high resolution of the system and indicate similar resolution and improved signal-to-noise is obtained with a 2 pinhole aperture compared with a single pinhole. We conclude that the performance characteristics of this system make it suitable for high resolution imaging of small laboratory animals.