Novel 4D image reconstruction for dynamic X-ray computed tomography in slow rotating scanners

Dynamic contrast enhanced CT can be used to measure perfusion, thus enabling a quantitative assessment of vascular integrity. Conventional dynamic CT involves the reconstruction of dynamic sequences of 3D images from complete projections acquired at relatively short time intervals. This approach is suitable for spiral scanners but it is unfeasible for most of small-animal cone-beam scanners, as the distribution of the contrast agent changes during the acquisition and leads to inconsistent projections. We present a new algorithm to achieve 4D reconstructions of dynamic CT in case of slow cone-beam scanners.