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|Risen 3: Titan Lords Download for PC
Risen 3 Titan Lords – BLACKBOX
Risen 3: Titan Lords Enhanced Edition – PLAZA
Risen 3: Titan Lords (Risen 3: Titan Lords) is an action role-playing game developed by Piranha Bytes and published by Deep Silver is. The game continues Risen 2: Dark Waters Risen is the third part of the series. Risen 3 is a throwback to the Middle Ages the first Risen, not like pirate theme in the second edition. Games in August 2014 for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 was released. Advanced or Enhanced Edition version of the game released on August 21, 2015 for the PlayStation 4 is required. Abandonment by the rulers and the suffering of the war in Titan, a new threat has grown from the soil. Player in a new role called "Nameless Hero or nameless hero" role, not as the previous version. Before the official launch of the Risen 3: Titan Lords, rumored to be called Risen 3: Blazing Oceans (Risen 3: Ocean F) for the third edition of the game. Risen 3: Titan Lords received mixed reviews. Large-scale world, a variety of enemies, and varied environments, as well as various minor tweaks, the strengths and appreciated the game.
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Suki Monster
Wed 15th Aug 2001, 6:37 pm
Ok I am going to give u my opinion on as much of the stuff I have tried owned and destroyed in my musical life time.I will kepp adding stuff here when i try something new.Please dont shout at me if you disagree as I am NEVER EVER wrong.
Great distortion pedal with a great phat sound but beware used with a bright or trebly amp it will become your worst nightmare. £45 can you afford not to buy it?
Yuck.I had mine for about three days before I sold it the sound is scooped thumpy and nasty sounds too fat and boomy for chords and to thin and trebly for leads.
Possibly my favorite pedal ever made adds an octave below and the option of adding another octave below that.It sounds Phat and will make riffs stand out, It also will make a lead break sound fuller if you are in a three piece band.Only draw back is if the bassist makes a mistake you can be sure he will blame this little fella.
This is the standard Delay pedal that most of todays "rawk Stars" use.And they do it for its great trustworthy sound and road toughness plus it has a wee knob that doubles as a sorta pitch shifer, in the right hands it can be deadly. It is Worth the 100 notes that our friends at roland uk are charging for it.
This is the best phaser that was ever made warm,squealchy,over the top and analog. But beware only geeks use elector harmonix.
A friend of mine had one of these and i wanted one for ages so i recently bought one it is a filter type pedal and at times sounds like a heavy phasing type sound with a bit of ring modulation.It makes your guitar sound like its talking (nearly) and for an example listen to that weird noize at the start of muses plug in baby.This pedal doesnt quite do peter frampton but it trys and comes pretty close. P.s Also for geeks
I recently sold mine it is an excellent pedal which will give you moogish analog type synth sounds but my only problem was its unreliability as one day you will have it set at a great sound then the next day those same settings will sound completely different.But if you are one of these freaks who thinks that unreliability is "cool" go for it.
Industry standard Used by rawk giants such as Hendrix,clapton tom morello ect. Everybody has one.
Great sounding chorus/vibrato rotating speaker device Gives your guitar a slight hammond organ feel. Dont expect anything to in your face with this pedal.For demo listen to ago go by john scofield or most songs off the holy bible.
Lovely warm tubey tone when backed off but at full distortion AC/DC rawk and roll.
Nasty rude ugly and brilliant. For example listen to that foo fighters godzilla track.
More to come.
P.s In my opinion avoid all products made By DOD especially the distortions.
Edit: added Bold & carraige returns for scannability
~rog Edited by: fastfude at: 8/15/01 9:29:07 pm
Wed 15th Aug 2001, 11:19 pm
I agree with nasty above, awesome.Great with added tremolo as well.
The nastiest sound ever! i love it, bassy with loadsa punch and a really 'tight' sound, if u know what i mean.Think MC5 or anything of helmets "betty" as a good sort of reference.I don't use the sustain, but it gives u a great sound, if like sukimonster, u have busy fingers and 'actually' enjoy soloing. The tonal range is great and its a good weapon with which to hit bass players with too.
This pedal is a gift to guitar playing humans, direct from God himself. It's so versatile, with more sounds than u think u can shake a dog at( I especially love the square waves on it). One can adjust the rate, depth of the tremolo and the actual wave. A vintage tremolo sound and should always be used if any of your songs have quiet parts,ALWAYS.
Thu 16th Aug 2001, 8:22 am
I concur on the intrinsic excellence of the Boss Tremelo Pedal.
It has the best range of tone and subtlty of effect of all the tremelo pedals I tried.
NB The Danelectro Tremelo pedal IS NOT a viable substitute for this sound.
Despite costing less than 30 quid compared to 80+ for the Boss.
It's tone is watery and stark, on some settings it just sounds like your lead is faulty.
Fri 17th Aug 2001, 11:32 am
If, unlike SukiMonster, ewe don't have £745 to spend
on effects pedals, I would recommend the METAL WERKER
pedal by Rocktek, which ewe should be able to
get for £30 or less.
This is just a very cheap and nasty distortion pedal,
with hideous bass and treble EQ on it.
We in the feline dream regularly put bass guitar and
synths through a couple of these to create big huge blarges
of disgusting fat messy sound -
it is ideal if you don't have a lot of band-members/instruments
in your line up, and you want to beef up a thin weedy
sound into something big and exciting.
Fri 17th Aug 2001, 12:32 pm
For the FX Gourmet,
here are some current manufacturers of luxury pedals:
of Oxfordshire
(Dr Robert Moog's company)
Fri 17th Aug 2001, 4:00 pm
Yes, i bought the said Boss Metal Zone off Suki, and i actually LIKED the sound. When played throo a lovely £40 Crybaby Wah pedal it sounded lovely. Some good harmonic sounds as well. It also gaves you a nice Lift in volume and Attack if used properly.
Niall Harden
Sat 18th Aug 2001, 5:12 pm
i have a Boss Hyper Metal that was given to me by our drummer Dave... i think it's pretty horrible on its own but used right it can boost your level and gain nicely and give infinite sustain - yum! i *also* agree about the E-H Small Stone - got one myself and the only problem is I want to use it on every song!
our guitarist Gareth had a Boss Hyper Fuzz and i have to say it was a horrible pedal also, if you've ever traped a wasp in a jam jar you'll know what i'm talking about... see also Marshall Jackhammer.
the Boss SD-1 overdrive pedal is a different matter, lovely overdrive sound, smooth, crunchy, warm, cheap
buy one today!
i have a cry baby as well... which i also blagged for free, and it's brilliant... my one's really old and has a few mechanical squeaks and cracks but if i could be bothered i'm sure it would be easy to sort out.
korg 'hyper distortion' two channel distortion pedal
pretty versatile and useable distortion sounds with amp simulator and EQ and stuff... however the level's quite low and it's not too reliable
also korg overdrive pedal
same thing with better sound to my ears, again 2 channels are nice for 'crunch' and 'yeah! solo!' settings
boss AC-2 acoustic simulator
i finds this pedal odd but i do like the sound off it... ovbiously not the most authentic sound but as you can imagine it's a very nice 'different' sound with four acoustic modes and lots of things to twiddle and get a pleasing sound from
korg ax-1G multi effects - absolutely brilliant value for money, has tonnes of effects and for the price of this you could only get a couple of stomp boxes, obviously the sound quality and 'patch' setup won't appeal to tone freaks or people who want versitality but for the first foray into the world of multi effects or the bedroom player it's superb. i have one and i'm selling it (offers welcome) because of this baby:
Digitech RP2000
absoloutely stunning array of tones, effects, amps, gizmos, things to play with, built in expression pedal (assignable to anything) and the system for working it is beautifully simple...
there are four pedals at the bottom and two above them... the two select 'up' or 'down' a patch and the four select compression on/off, amp channel (clean / dist), effects on/off and delay on/off. on top of that there's the expression pedal which you can assign to anything - wah, whammy, trem speed, gain, anything.
it has an enormous range of sounds and a really good amp simulator and loads more stuff... if you want a multi-effects this is the one. i think there's one in smithfield at the moment...
edit: still formatting. honestly, people. how do you sleep at night?! ~rog Edited by: fastfude at: 8/18/01 9:44:06 pm
Mon 20th Aug 2001, 10:03 pm
KORG OD-1 OVERDRIVE, I agree with Niall quality pedal.Really good sounding, plenty of options on it, 2 modes that are both really sweet, and the best thing was i got it for really cheap(£40)!!! they retail for £120 and they don't even make them any more so they are a real bargain
In my opinion whips the metal zone.I tried it out and various other heavy pedals, and in the end it just destroyed everything else.Really heavy low end, and tonnes of gain.IT can get quite fuzzy and horrible but when you tweak it right, it is the sweetest sounding thing.For par chords and drop D it can't be beaten and for £50 can anyone complain, i think not.
Danelectro BLT Slap Echo
Really strange sounding pedal for an Echo pedal.Really it only sounds echo'y
if you play really short notes, but once you start to run some notes together it has this really weird individual sound.Seriously, you know the start of PARDON ME by INCUBUS, well it sounds exactly like that, sort of like volume swells, but with slight Chorus and Phaser on it.Very strange.Some people will dislike it because it doesn't really do what it says on the tin, but once you get into the vibe of the thing it rocks.AT £30 can anyone argue??
Now this was asking for trouble.It has a great array of effects and it comes in a neat cool looking plastic case, that is prety durable.But the distortions are HORRIBLE, the Chorus is pretty good, the Delays are alright,
and the Phasers and Flangers are also reasonable, but it is a really annoying setup that you always HAVE TO have an
effect on, and with only 2 pedals this become a pain in the ass, and bypassing that can only be done by pushing both down together and that can be tricky when onstage or whatever.It also makes a terrible humming noise when played with any type of adaptor, and that just annoys me.Ahh well at £100 loads of people will buy it cos it looks good, most likely all wee kids, but don't.
Niall Harden
Tue 21st Aug 2001, 4:44 pm
Re: above comments on Zoom 707
see also Korg AX1G
that's what i meant, basically
dodgi stereo
Mon 3rd Sep 2001, 1:47 pm
Not wanting to actually give away too much on the opinion front I think I have a valid piece of info.
Not all DOD pedals are poor. True, a lot of the distortion units designed at the end of the 1980's were a little irritatingly one dimensional. It must be said that during the 90's they played catch up and made some truley unique units.
Buzz box. raw square wave distortion/fuzz with octave effect. Your average speaker will distort too. Sounds of self destruction.
Gonkulator. a more brittle/zingy fuzz with a ringmodulator. Clanky synth tones a la Devo/Pigface. Leftfield/Industrial.
Vibro thang. A curious sounding modulation that combines tremolo, chorus, and phaser. Subtle and atmospheric. Very usable.
These are just three examples of quality "NEU" sounds some of their pedals can create. As opposed to trying to recreate the sound of something vintage/retro/cool.
Everyones' ears are differently educated though
Niall Harden
Mon 3rd Sep 2001, 6:07 pm
I bought a Zoom UF-01 Ultra Fuzz a few days ago, ad it's tremendous. Really, really, really good. There are 6 dials and you can get any fuzz sound at all from it... and more. Plus the overall build quality and sound quality are brilliant.
Whilst I'm here, someone tell me what delay pedal to get? Akai Headrush / Line 6 DE4 / Ibanez DE7 / Boss DD-3/DD-5 / other?
Mon 3rd Sep 2001, 8:34 pm
The Boss Digital Delay pedals are pretty much the industry standard delay pedals.They are what a lot of Professional musicians use, but the BOSS RV-3 seems to be the main choice for a lot of people right now.It has Reverb and Delay and is a bit more expensive, but it has a lot more options and possibilities.
But the Line6 DL4, is in my opinion the mutz nutz when it comes to delay and echo.It has the most settings, and it has a loop sampler that has up to 14 seconds of memory and it can hold up to four settings at once that can be accessed independantly.It is a class act.It beginning to be used more commonly now amongst professionals and by guitar players in big bands because of its options.It is more expensive again.But it is well worth it, Bairds have one, so you could go try it out as i did, even though i didn't buy it, but it sounds great.
You can check out some sample sounds of it on the line6 website @ www.line6.com, then go to the stompboxes and do the stompboxes section, then to stompbox tour, and check out the sounds, they are all amazing.
Suki Monster
Mon 3rd Sep 2001, 11:39 pm
The boss is tha industry standard and fantastic and tha line 6 is also very very very very good.
Wed 5th Sep 2001, 7:56 pm
right you guys i need a wee bit of help, well some suggestions anyway.
I just got an Electro Harmonix Big Muff Pi brought back from america for me, it is the big black russian made one though, and i think it is top class, but i as yet haven't got it tweaked properly.
What i was wonderin was if any of you guys use one, or have used one, could you please tell me what some of the settings were that you used on it to get a sweet sound, just so i get a fair idea of where to set mine.
glzebub of four star
Mon 19th Nov 2001, 6:43 pm
right here's my wee opinion on what i've owned.
marshall guvnor mk2. excellent overdrive, sort of like a jcm800, if you like slash, this pedal is £45 and sounds fab, good on lower gain bluesy stuff too, but really no metal. good as boss overdrive and cheaper and looks cooler, through valve amp - superb.
danelectro fab tone.
eh....@#%$ tone, sounds like a boss metal zone, controls don't work, ok if you just want real heavy @#%$.cheap also.
boss hyper fuzz.
just @#%$. only used the boost mode, fuzz1 and fuzz2 crap.
digitech rp2000, not really for me but i really can't fault it, huge range of useable and very good sounds, just needs a lot of tweaking.
digitech rp100, nowhere near the rp2000, ok, used just through headphones for late night shenanigans.
proco vintage rat- totally @#%$ ace! just massive, my fav sound, use constantly now.
morley wah/volume- good "fat rock wah" tone, nothin'funky here, volume ok, not enough effective travel on the pedal though.
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subset: commoncrawl


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I just passed 2 days without writing any post. Sigh. Okay, lets move on.
So, now im going to tell you about my favourite quote. I do love quote. I personally think that quote is a brilliant thought from a person, which will be like motivational sentences to other persons. I like 3 quotes from super brainy scientist as follows:
I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious. – Einstein
I love this quote. It keeps remind me that you dont need to have a special talent to do what you want to do. You actually can learn how to do all things in the world if you are curious and always eager to learn something new.
It is far better to know something about everything than to know all about one thing -Pascal
I agree with this quote. As i always like to learn so many kind of new things, but i dont like to be advanced in one thing. I like to learn and know the tip of many things and connect it. Maybe you think its ridiculous, but as i see, all things in the world is seems connected.
Life is like riding a bicycle. To keep your balance you must keep moving. – Einstein
This quote reminds me that, i should do the continous self-improvement. Life is a never ending learning. Once we tried to stop our self-improvement, we will loose our balance, and will fall down.
Thats my favourite quotes. Thanks for reading 🙂


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Easy to learn and operate. good image quality, especially at 64 and 100 ISO. 200 and 400 are decent, and 800 is also decent for small prints. Solidly built, and logical menus. 26mm wide angle is awesome - there is a touch of distortion at full wide angle, but not a problem for nature and landscape photography. Small and compact, and excellent electronic viewfinder. Lots of options and customization. Problems: Photos are a touch soft, but easily remedied by increasing contrast and ...View review in forums Leave a comment on this review
Olympus SP-565UZ
Nice camera at an incredible price! I've owned my 565 for about 6 months now and love it. I've own 2 other cameras, but this one has them beat. Construction of the 565 is really good. It's one of the smallest 20x cameras out there making it easier to carry and store. Build is sturdy, strong and comfortable. Features are too many to mention here. Has full auto to full manual. P setting is what I use the most, allowing for auto setting and manual setting at the same time, such as auto ...View review in forums Leave a comment on this review
Poor AF, most of the frames are not in focus at all. Sometimes there is NO ANY focused point in the whole frame though the shooting conditions were pretty well. I've tried all AF methods available in the camera but without any significant improvement. Noise floor is too high and many distortions can be observed even at ISO200. The ratio of good shots to the total shots done at indoor is ~1/30, while outdoor ratio is ~5/30.View review in forums Leave a comment on this review
This is the 3rd camera in this Olympus series that I have purchased and overall I am pleased. The 20x zoom is incredible and with the image stabilization (not on my previous models) it is even easier to get clear pictures at the long telephoto position. It also overcomes one of the weaknesses of previous models in that it has a wide angle position. The 10 megapixels is also great and can allow you to crop out even smaller portions of an image and still print it in high quality. I generally ...View review in forums Leave a comment on this review
nice cam.. worth buying....View review in forums Leave a comment on this review
bad AF- very often wrong , lens good -but with small Sensor this means nothing - junk Problems: slow and very noisy.View review in forums Leave a comment on this review
I have shot several Hundred images with the Olympus SP-565UZ over several months. My one complaint is Each and Every photo needs a Post Shooting ~ Tweak of some sort. I use the Un Sharp 95 % of the time, due to lack of sharpness. I must also up the contrast. I would have expected a much sharper lens. It could just be MY camers lense, and I got a Limon?. OR NOT?View review in forums Leave a comment on this review
Just bought oly SP565-UZ and it's a great camera. Very easy to use, good quaiity of pictures, very compact. I use to be a fan of Canon but I'm find with oly.It's smaller than the others with a 20x zoom. Problems: Not so far.View review in forums Leave a comment on this review
|Madrid subway by MAGMATCICO62
from Your City - Public Transport
|Incandescent Bulb by Kukla
from Illuminate- Macro only
|Curiousity by PERCY2
from Macro - Your Best Macro Ever
|Hoar Frosted Trees by sabishiT3T
from Cold


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Despite WA leading the world in battling the superbug MRSA (methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus) and leading Australia in keeping in check the bacteria VRE (vancomycin-resistant enterococci), microbiologist Keryn Christiansen remains concerned that the State could be doing more to guard against dangerous emerging multi-antibiotic-resistant E.coli and klebsiella.
These are the bowel bugs gaining immunity to the drugs used to fight them that have caused havoc in India and Europe.
With the popularity of long-distance travel and medical tourism, including overseas trips for cosmetic surgery and transplants, she predicts it will not be long until they are on WA's doorstep.
In preparation, she believes Australia's current surveillance system, which involves only an "annual snapshot" of antibiotic- resistant E.coli and klebsiella, needs to be upgraded to continuous monitoring within the State, including epidemiologically typing in order to inform public health action. A similar, much more thorough, monitoring system had already proved effective in keeping MRSA and VRE in check in WA.
In an environment where E.coli and klebsiella were picking up a lot of resistance genes making them more and more difficult to treat, current efforts were not enough, she said. Already from the Indian subcontinent had come "really nasty" forms, with antibiotic- resistance genes located on mobile elements – a moving snippet of DNA – with the potential to jump to other strains.
Alarm bells began ringing in the medical community with the discovery of a gene called NDM-1, (New Delhi metallo–lactamase-1), which passes easily between E.coli and klebsiella and makes them resistant to almost all of the powerful, newer generation, last-line group of antibiotics called carbapenems.
Then in April, it was announced that disease-causing bacteria carrying this new genetic resistance to antibiotics, NDM-1, had been discovered in New Delhi's drinking water supply.
The finding was made by a Cardiff University-led team and there were estimates that 500,000 New Delhi residents may be carrying the NDM-1 resistance gene in their gut flora. Then reports began coming in of infections already appearing in patients in Australia, in Europe, North America and other parts of Asia.
Adding to the disease burden, recent newspaper reports have been focusing on warnings of another deadly E.coli bacterium, the O104:H4 strain that has continued to spread around the world from its source in northern Germany. It is also resistant to several antibiotics, although the toxin it produces is the major health threat.
Originally Spanish cucumbers were wrongly blamed as the source of this outbreak.
"We have already had NDM-1 on the east coast," Professor Christiansen said. "We have not had one yet in Perth, but it will come because we do have a lot of people going to the subcontinent for medical tourism. They go there for their transplants, they go there for their cosmetic surgery, and they will bring it back.
"Obviously travellers will too. There was a recent journal article that showed it was in the drinking water in India.
"So travellers will start to bring these sorts of organisms into the country and we will start to see more and more of these and it is going to make treatment really difficult. And now in WA, we don't have any kind of real surveillance to know what is happening."
Based at Royal Perth Hospital, considered an expert in the field and given the role of examining all local isolates of superbugs, Professor Christiansen was a main speaker at Australia's "call to urgent action" Antimicrobial Resistance Summit in February, held
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text: My wife has been searching for a new guy and finally found him! We met him last night after work at a pub. Our plan was just to talk but she did a little more. He's advertised himself well online and was very easy to talk to. I knew my wife was into him. They flirted and explained their expectations to each other. They kissed for the first time with me sitting there awkwardly. The table we were at didn't provide much cover so she invited him outside. I paid for the drinks and we got into our car. They continued kissing as I got to be the "lookout." My wife gave him head right there in the parking lot! The guy's dick is enormous so she was thrilled. He came in her mouth and she immediately kissed me afterward. She pushed his cum into my mouth with her tongue and kept our mouths locked until I swallowed. He laughed and said "I'm going to have fun with you two." We went our separate ways. I took my wife home and fucked her the best I could. Afterward, she told she hopes the new guy can come over soon.


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The current model has been selling well since its launch in October last year, quickly establishing itself as one of the top selling medium 4WDs in the market.
But the arrival of an all-new Toyota Kluger last month has put pressure on all the established players. The Kluger outsold the Captiva in its first month on sale.
Apart from curtain airbags, the Captiva SX models also get a leather-wrapped steering wheel. More expensive models get standard rear parking sensors, although a rear camera is still not available.
Captiva CX models get a leather-wrapped steering wheel, roof rails, front fog lights, a driver information display (trip computer, compass and outside temperature), climate control air-conditioning and chrome exhaust tips. The LX models gain satin silver roof rails, chrome door handles and automatic headlights.
The flagship Maxx models get a trip computer, chrome exhaust tips and door handles, automatic headlights, front and rear parking sensors, a retractable cargo area cover, rain-sensing wipers and a centre armrest in the second row with a storage box.
From November, there will be new exterior colours for the SX, CX and LX models.
Prices start from $35,990 for the diesel SX manual up to $43,990 for the diesel LX automatic and Maxx petrol auto.
At the end of August, the Captiva had a 14 per cent share of the medium soft-roader segment. In the first eight months of the year Holden sold 6715 Captivas, behind the Toyota Prado (9685) and the top-selling Ford Territory (11,948).
Toyota has also made changes to its larger Prado off-roader (which despite its size is a rival for the Kluger) to keep it competitive, bringing in a cheaper diesel model from $44,600, more than $2000 less than its previous cheapest model, the petrol GX.
The new model, called the Standard, comes with a five-speed manual or optional five-speed automatic transmission for an extra $3000.
Two option packs are available - the first has anti-lock brakes, cruise control and a leather-wrapped gearshift lever and costs $1200.
The second option pack for manual models includes side and curtain airbags, anti-lock brakes, a leather shift lever and cruise control for $2200.
The second option pack on automatic models costs $5500 and includes the extra items that form the manual option pack but adds stability control, chrome mirrors and grille and climate control air conditioning.
The flagship Grande models also gain a rear camera.
Toyota introduced a new 3.0-litre (127kW, 410Nm) diesel engine towards the end of last year. It produces 32 per cent more power and 19.5 per cent more torque than the engine it replaced.


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Dermalogica UltraCalming Serum Concentrate (Salon Size; Bottle) (118ml/4oz)
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Discussion in 'Couples and Women Seeking' started by Low_Key, Jul 8, 2015.
good read. he is rare of his kind who wants to be cuckolded. way to go!
Its a shame that we are so far away. I would definitely give you guys a try.
Best of luck!
Where are all the Socal BBC at? LA, OC, SD.. we're open to travel. We're very real and serious. Open to a BBC gangbang, too.
In SD! Her sexy ass will get it GOOD!
im very much interested...yahoo messnger or skype.. My ID is : deerxx2009doctor
Love the pic, LB right here
Sd here and would gladly open my lines of communication for her .
Inbox me
I have a white friend who may be able to host us also
Checking out and talking to everyone. Don't trip if she ends up not selecting you or it takes weeks or even months. We'll verify if need be. She's picky because I already give her everything she needs; this is just a fantasy we want to help fulfill for the both of us. And we also lead busy lives, as I'm sure you all do as well. Thanks for the interest and compliments.
By the way, to her, a cock is just a cock until there's a cute face attached. Face is more important than cock!
Stilll seeking
damn i wish i was closer
You're huge
Very nice!!
thank you sexy
i would love to get in that ass and pussy beautiful
I'm in the Inland empire
Im in so cal. Let's talk
Lots of BBC to talk to so be patient. We just got sick too. If you don't hear from us, well, it's like a job interview, lol. We're both picky, but respectful, so it's never anything personal.
What we've been toying is inviting 2-5 of the BBCs we like the most to a bar-type atmosphere. Give a heads up and give you guys an opportunity to meet and flirt with her yourself. Let the chemistry speak for itself.
Im in
Nice pics
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I used to wonder how with the number of churches in Nigeria why we still wallow is the endless abyss of corruption, poverty, self-centeredness and other uncountable societal ills.
At times what some pastors preach on television are so nauseating that they make me wonder where they are getting their purported inspirations from.
Some of these pastors will readily say we need prayer and that our sins are too many no matter what national issues are brought up. What most of them preach really shows they don't even know what's really going on in the outside world.
In the USA the liberation of the blacks started in the churches, why can't Nigerians liberation start in all these churches, or do the pastors fear a crackdown on their churches if they preach revolution instead of all the unattainable prosperity sham they are churning out.
Why must the prophet in the land continue to lie to the people?


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An assembly to bid farewell to Mr. John Adams, the schools favourite Guidance Counsellor, who was retiring from teaching in New Zealand.
Try to imagine this is your first day at school. "You'll be fine, just follow along."
On behalf of the young men of Palmerston North Boys' High School, the staff, Board of Trustees and the wider school community, we would like to thank and acknowledge Mr. Adams for the very significant impact he has had on our school over the last thirty years, and to wish him all the best for his retirement.


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|Publication number
|Publication type
|Application number
|Publication date
|2 Dec 2008
|Filing date
|27 Oct 2005
|Priority date
|25 Jun 2002
|Fee status
|Also published as
|Publication number
|Neal H. Clinthorne, Predrag Sukovic
|Original Assignee
|The Regents Of The University Of Michigan
|Export Citation
|BiBTeX, EndNote, RefMan
|Patent Citations (67), Non-Patent Citations (8), Referenced by (3), Classifications (19), Legal Events (3)
|External Links: USPTO, USPTO Assignment, Espacenet
This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 10/183,146 filed Jun. 25, 2002 now U.S. Pat No. 7,099,428 entitled "High Spatial Resolution X-Ray Computed Tomography (CT) System". This application is also related to co-pending application entitled "Method, Processor and Computed Tomography (CT) Machine for Generating Images Utilizing High and Low Sensitivity Data Collected From A Flat Panel Detector Having an Extended Dynamic Range", filed May 29, 2002 and having U.S. Ser. No. 10/157,282, now U.S. Pat. No. 6,868,138.
This invention was made with Government support under NIH Grant No. CA 65637. The Government has certain rights in the invention.
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to high spatial resolution, X-ray computed tomography (CT) methods and systems.
2. Background Art
The current state of imaging modalities used in these areas of dentomaxillofacial practice, with a particular emphasis on implantology, is described in the following subsections.
Implantology: Pre-Operative and Post-Operative Imaging
The use of dental implants is becoming an increasingly common treatment to replace missing teeth. Successful outcome of the treatment, osseointegration of the implant, depends heavily on precise presurgical planning. Since the functional load in implants can be high, it is important that the implant be placed in a position where it can contact cortical bone and at an angle where the forces are as perpendicular as possible. Selection of the appropriate size and inclination of the implant in both a bucco-lingual and mesio-distal direction requires precise knowledge of the anatomy of the proposed site, including its dimension in all planes, the presence of knife-edge ridges and undercuts, as well as the location of anatomic structures, such as the nasal fossae, the maxillary sinus, and the mandibular canal. An evaluation of the thickness of the cortical bone and the density of the medullary bone is also important to the success of the implant.
Acquiring the information needed for implant treatment planning requires some type of imaging examination. A number of imaging modalities have been used over the years, but they all have limitations and none are completely satisfactory.
Periapical radiography has enough resolution to depict trabecular bone pattern and the floor of the maxillary sinuses, but the images are limited in size and anatomic coverage and often suffer from geometric distortion. In addition, periapical radiographs are only two-dimensional images and do not provide information about the third, bucco-lingual, dimension.
Panoramic radiography is commonly used for implant site assessment because it is readily available, inexpensive, and provides wide coverage of the jaws. However, there are a large number of disadvantages to this technique that limit its usefulness for implant site assessment. The two primary problems are lack of information in the bucco-lingual plane and variability of the degree of magnification in different parts of the image due to changing distance between the rotational center, jaw structures, and film as the X-ray beam rotates around the head. Minor errors in positioning the patient's head in the machine can also exaggerate the degree of enlargement variability, particularly in the horizontal direction. Although dentists frequently try to overcome these magnification problems by having the patient wear a surgical stent with metal markers of a known size during the examination, this device is not adequate to solve all distortion errors.
Conventional (i.e., non-computed, "focal-plane" or "linear") tomography has found an important application in the presurgical examination of proposed implant sites. Its major advantage over periapical and panoramic radiography stems from its ability to show bucco-lingual cross-sectional images. From these cross-sectional images, the dentist can estimate the spatial relationships of anatomic structures, bone height and width, and the inclination of the alveolar processes at the areas into which the implants are to be placed. Numerous studies have demonstrated that conventional tomography can depict the location of important anatomic structures, such as the mandibular canal, more accurately than panoramic radiography. Dimensional measurements are generally reliable with complex-motion tomography, and less so with linear-motion systems.
Conventional tomographs, however, have been reported not to be of diagnostic quality sufficient to allow identification of the canal in as many as 20% of cases. This is primarily due to the unavoidable blur that is inherent in the method, although some canals are poorly corticated and thus would be difficult to visualize with any technique. Another very important disadvantage of conventional tomography is that it is usually necessary to acquire multiple slices to ensure that the region of diagnostic interest is sampled adequately. Because each slice is acquired successively, the process is time-consuming and laborious, thus expensive, and it exposes the patient to a radiation dose that can be high, depending on the number of slices obtained.
X-ray computed tomography (CT) is a more sophisticated method for obtaining cross-sectional images than conventional tomography. It has been considered to be the most reliable technique for the assessment of bone height and width and localization of the inferior alveolar canal, mental foramen, nasopalatine canal, and maxillary sinuses. Consequently, it has been widely recommended for implant planning.
Conventional CT has its drawbacks, however. First, with its merely 2-D reformatted images, it may not clearly depict the inferior alveolar canal. Second, it is time-consuming: conventional CT requires more than 20 minutes to get all the axial slices for a dental implant study. With such a long scanning time, patient fatigue and patient swallowing start blurring the image. Third, conventional CT exposes the patient to a high radiation dose. Fourth, it is expensive. Fifth, it suffers from poor resolution, especially in the z-direction. Sixth, metal streak artifacts can occur in the presence of metallic dental restorations, requiring judicious selection of scan orientation and boundaries to minimize its occurrence.
Spiral CT is one of the most advanced imaging modalities available and is gradually replacing conventional CT. It is primarily used in the areas of medicine that require full body imaging, but is finding its use in dentistry as well. Spiral CT can generate not only 2-D cross-sectional images, but also fully 3-D images. Its 3-D capability is due to the fact that the X-ray source and detector continuously move along a spiral path relative to the body, thus acquiring data that are essentially 3-D. Spiral CT has been successfully used for the presurgical assessment for implant treatment planning.
However, the use of spiral CT in dentistry is hampered by its high cost and radiation dose, low spatial resolution in axial direction, and metal streak artifacts. In order to overcome some of the disadvantages, specifically high cost and radiation dose, two dental imaging methods have been proposed: Tuned-Aperture Computed Tomography (TACT™) and Ortho-CT.
TACT™, "an inexpensive alternative to CT," is based on the theory of tomosynthesis. The relatively low cost of TACT is party due to its simplicity and partly due to its use of equipment that already exists at the facility. The use of TACT in implantology has been suggested, but no controlled studies have yet been performed. Nevertheless, its disadvantages in implant planning can be assessed from its characteristics. First, TACT requires the use of fiducial markers to estimate the imaging geometry and perform the reconstruction. This adds to the complexity of operating the instrument. Second, it uses CCD sensors of a low contrast resolution. Third, TACT does no have actual 3-D capabilities, but so-called pseudo-3D; 2-D images are being displayed from different angles, simulating varying projection geometries and providing some perception of three dimensions to the viewer. So, with TACT, the gain in cost-effectiveness is offset by a lower quality scan.
Ortho-CT is another potentially inexpensive alternative to spiral CT. Ortho-CT is basically a small cone-beam CT unit obtained by modifying a maxillofacial radiographic unit called Scanora� (Soredex, Helsinki, Finland) in order to acquire a "partial" CT scan.
In this context, the term "partial CT scan" refers to a cone-beam CT scan using a circular orbit, which, in addition to having the usual cone-beam incompleteness problem (i.e., a circular orbit does not satisfy Tuy's completeness conditions), is more incomplete in the sense that the data is insufficient for quantitatively reconstructing 3-D cross-sectional images to the use of a detector and scan geometry that do not measure all necessary rays through the object.
As an example, the "fan-beam scan" or central slice of the circular-orbit cone-beam scan is complete if the detector and scan geometry measure all parallel rays through the object at angles ranging from 0 to 180 degrees.
In the Ortho-CT device, a complete set of parallel rays is not measured at any view angle. It has a good spatial resolution; the resolving power at an MTF of 0.5 can be 1 lp mm−1 and the visual resolution limit about 2.0 lp mm−1. Radiation dose is low; skin dose is almost the same as with panoramic radiography and several dozen times lower than with conventional CT.
However, the applicability of Ortho-CT in implant planning is limited for four reasons. First, it can image only small areas (32�38 mm). If a larger area needs to be imaged, multiple scans are required. Second, its contrast resolution is so low that Ortho-CT is incapable of discriminating soft tissue. Third, its values are only relative and do not correspond to the absolute values of bone density. This is a consequence of its use of incomplete data. Fourth, although its behavior in the presence of metal fillings has not been reported on, it is expected that it suffers from metal streak artifacts.
In addition to presurgical planning of implants, there is a need for long-term maintenance and monitoring of tissue health around the implant after surgery has been performed. Peri-implantitis can progress around dental implants in a manner similar to the progression of periodontitis around natural teeth. If the determination of a failing implant could be made before the implant actually fails, therapeutic intervention might prevent further deterioration of implant support and loss of the implant. A long-standing goal of periodontal research is to find a diagnostic tool with a high sensitivity for detecting subtle disease activity around teeth. In particular, the detection of subtle changes in bone mass may be of great value for evaluating progressive periodontal disease or bone gain/loss after therapy.
Conventional radiography is routinely used by periodontists for the postsurgical assessment of the implant. It can display the mesial and distal aspects of the implant site, but it provides little information about the facial and lingual aspects of the implant site because of the obscuring effects of the radiopaque implant material. Its other major limitations include the subjective interpretation of the radiographic image, lack of sensitivity, and the inability to quantify bone mass.
Digital subtraction radiography can quantify bone mass and thus can be used for postsurgical implant assessment. The method involves taking two separate radiographic scans and then subtracting them. The two images are made at different times and must be as identical as possible. The exposure factors and processing parameters that affect density and contrast must be consistent between the two scans and the projection geometry must be duplicated as nearly as possible All this makes the method laborious and inefficient, especially when the medium is film, which is often the case. Finally, it cannot overcome the obscuring effects of a metal implant sufficiently to allow reliable detection of facial and lingual bone loss at implant sites.
The Temporomandibular Joint (TMJ)
When a patient presents complaints referable to the TMJ region, the findings from the clinical examination may indicate the need for imaging to aid in diagnosis and treatment planning. The osseous structures can be visualized with a variety of imaging techniques, including plain and panoramic radiography, conventional tomography and CT, depending on the degree of detail required.
Conventional tomography plays a significant role in TMJ imaging. Tomographic studies in the lateral and coronal planes demonstrate osseous components of the joint, whereas arthrotomographic examinations provide information about the status of the soft-tissue intra-articular disk. However, tomography of the TMJ is technically demanding because the imaging protocol must be customized for each patient due to the variability of condylar angles. Images made with linear-motion machines may also be suboptimal due to streaking artifacts and incomplete blurring of adjacent structures.
The use of computed tomography for TMJ imaging has generally been reserved for complex cases as a result of its relatively high cost and high radiation dose. Evaluation of articular disk position and function is usually performed with magnetic resonance imaging or arthrotomography, again both expensive techniques.
Detection of Facial Fractures
Another important problem in dentistry is the determination of the location and displacement of facial fractures in patients who have suffered trauma to the maxillofacial region. Complex trauma to the facial skeleton requires both highly qualified clinical knowledge and an accurate imaging technique.
Conventional radiography is unsuitable for the task because it requires multiple scans to obtain all the views that are necessary for evaluation. Even with a series of radiographs, it is sometimes difficult to detect subtle fractures. And conventional tomography, while theoretically capable of demonstrating complex anatomy better than planar projection radiographs, has generally been superseded by CT in most hospitals.
Spiral CT imaging is a better solution for detection of facial fractures. Only one spiral CT scan is needed for the examination, and it does not require movement of the patient to obtain multiple views. It is very fast and can scan the entire midface and the frontal sinus in less than a minute. Thus, it allows the diagnostician to move on to other essential diagnostic and therapeutic interventions without delay. Also, it allows for further processing of the data without requiring the patient's continued presence in the CT unit. Finally, spiral CT produces images of superior quality and can be used to generate 3-D images that can be rotated on a video screen to demonstrate the anatomy and pathology from all angles.
However, the use of spiral CT for detecting facial fractures has drawbacks. It is costly and it exposes the patient to a high radiation dose. It also suffers from metal streak artifacts, which can result in misleading scans of the facial complex.
Lesions and Diseases of Soft Tissue in the Head and Neck
In addition to imaging of the bony structures of the maxillofacial complex, a very important task is the imaging of the soft tissues in the head and neck. Particularly important is imaging of inflammations, cysts, and tumors.
While conventional radiography produces adequate bone images, it provides little information regarding soft tissues as a result of the inability of film-screen systems to record X-ray attenuation differences of less than 2%.
CT, however, is much more effective at separating subtle tissue contrast difference (as low as 0.5%). CT can differentiate not only soft tissue from bone, but also various types of soft tissues from each other. Consequently, CT has found a very important application in the evaluation of the presence and extent of clinically suspected pathology in the head and neck, including tumors, cysts, and inflammations. When additional information concerning the soft tissues is required, an intravenous contrast agent can be used. Cavalcanti et al. have successfully used spiral CT to measure the volume of oral tumors.
Although CT has proven superior in many aspects to other modalities in this application, its use has been limited by three factors: cost, radiation dose and metal streak artifacts. In addition, the spatial resolution available in current CT scanners, which are designed primarily for full-body imaging, may not be optimal for lesions in the head and neck.
MRI has also been used to image soft tissue of the head and neck. Some advantages of MRI over CT include better contrast resolution, absence of artifact degradation from dental restorations, visualization of major vessels without intravenous injection of contrast material, and direct, three-plane imaging without patient repositioning. MRI, however, is more expensive than CT, and requires a longer time to obtain a scan. To date, there is no general consensus about which imaging technique is optimal for use in diagnosis of lesions in the head.
Reconstructive Facial Surgery
Surgery of craniofacial deformities is a complex task that requires careful preoperative planning and specific, detailed information on patient's pathology and anatomy. The goals of maxillofacial surgery are not limited to treating the condition of bone, but extend to improving both the morphology and function of soft tissues, such as facial appearance for the patient. It is necessary, therefore, to ascertain how the proposed alteration of bone will affect the form and function of the surrounding soft tissue. Effective planning of reconstructive facial surgery requires not only adequate imaging of the bone and soft tissue but also the means of interpreting these images in combination to predict how the surgical alteration of bone will affect soft tissue.
Radiography has been used with a certain amount of success for planning facial reconstructive surgery. However, facial reconstructive surgery presents a three-dimensional problem of anatomical rearrangement and cannot be effectively planned using two-dimensional images. Morever, some facial and skeletal anomalies, specifically those involving facial asymmetry, are not amenable to analysis using only two-dimensional images.
CT and MRI can supply detailed, three-dimensional information on the patient's anatomy, and have therefore become the methods of choice in maxillofacial surgery planning. They are typically used in conjunction with computer software that shows the predicted three-dimensional rendered postoperative facial surface. However, both are expensive. In addition, CT suffers from metal streak artifacts and exposes the patient to a high radiation dose while MRI is not particularly useful for examining bony structures.
Several devices have been conceived for dentomaxillofacial imaging. Ortho-CT is a vertically oriented device that acquires a partial CT scan, and while spatial resolution is adequate, the device suffers from artifacts due to the incomplete nature of the scan and does not produce quantitatively accurate estimates of attenuation (necessary for assessing bone quality).
TomCAT is a cone-beam imaging device in which the patient lies supine on an imaging table similar to conventional spiral or single-slice CT instruments. The TomCAT uses an image intensifier and CCD camera for the detector—a combination that has relatively poor dynamic range (reducing quantitative accuracy) and also suffers from spatial distortions. Although images reconstructed from TomCAT have spatial resolution similar to conventional general-purpose CT instruments, contrast resolution is quite poor and images appear to suffer from a great deal of X-ray scatter (and perhaps veiling glare from the image intensifier).
Individual methods are known to be close to the techniques described herein (e.g., Wagner's method for scatter estimation and correction).
The following U.S. patents are deemed to be relevant to the present invention: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,390,112; 5,615,279; 6,018,563; 5,909,476; 6,118,842; 6,075,836; and 5,999,587. The following U.S. patents are deemed to be of less relevance to the present invention: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,927,982; 6,094,467; 6,125,193; 5,461,650; 4,812,983; 4,590,558; 4,709,333; 5,243,664; 5,798,924; 6,035,012; 5,293,312; 5,390,112; 5,615,279; 5,644,612; 5,751,785; 5,042,487; and 5,909,476. The following U.S. patents are also deemed to be relevant: U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,778,045; 5,793,838; 5,805,659; 5,815,546; 5,864,146; 5,878,108; 5,881,123; 5,903,008; 5,921,927; 5,949,846; 5,970,112; 5,995,580; 6,052,428; 6,101,234; 6,101,236; 6,104,775; 6,118,841; 6,185,271B1; 6,285,733B1; 6,285,740B1; 6,289,074B1; 6,292,527B1; 6,298,110B1; 6,324,246B1.
An object of the present invention is to provide an improved high spatial resolution X-ray computed tomography (CT) method and system.
In carrying out the above object and other objects of the present invention, a high spatial resolution X-ray computed tomography (CT) system is provided. The system includes a support structure including a gantry mounted to rotate about a vertical axis of rotation. The system further includes a first assembly including an X-ray source mounted on the gantry to rotate therewith for generating a cone X-ray beam and a second assembly including a planar X-ray detector mounted on the gantry to rotate therewith. The detector is spaced from the source on the gantry for enabling a human or other animal body part to be interposed therebetween so as to be scanned by the X-ray beam to obtain a complete CT scan and generating output data representative thereof. The output data is a two-dimensional electronic representation of an area of the detector on which an X-ray beam impinges. A data processor processes the output data to obtain an image of the body part.
The second assembly may include a grid positioned adjacent the detector to reduce scatter.
The first assembly may include a shadow mask for spatially modulating the source and to estimate residual scatter.
The X-ray source and the X-ray detector may be mounted on the gantry to rotate therewith along an elliptical path.
The first assembly may be capable of irradiating the body part with two different X-ray spectra.
The first assembly may further include a source collimator mounted adjacent the X-ray source.
The system may further include a scatter rejection collimator mounted on the gantry to rotate therewith.
The system may further include a device for controlling position of the source collimator based on position of the detector relative to the source.
The detector may include a converter for converting X-ray radiation into visible light.
The detector may further include a hydrogenated amorphous silicon (aSi:H) detector array.
The data processor may be programmed with a statistical image reconstruction (SIR) program.
The entire body part may be scanned by the X-ray beam in a single scan.
The processor may be programmed with a penalized weighted least squares (PWLS) reconstruction program.
The processor may further be programmed with a dual energy penalized weighted least squares (DE PWLS) reconstruction program.
The detector may generate high and low energy data at each rotation angle of the gantry.
The processor may be programmed to obtain the high and low energy data from the detector and generate the image using the obtained data.
The system may further include means for correcting for body part motion at each rotation angle of the gantry.
The means for correcting may include a device that measures relative motion of the body part to obtain measurement data. The processor may be programmed with an image reconstruction program which utilizes the measurement data.
The body part may be a head, and the system may be a dentomaxillofacial system.
The gantry may be mounted to move vertically along the axis of rotation.
The gantry may be mounted to pivot along an accurate path about a point on the axis of rotation.
The system may further include a device for offsetting the detector in a plane substantially perpendicular to the axis of rotation relative to the gantry.
The system may further include an arm coupled to the detector and the source collimator for controlling position of the source collimator based on position of the detector.
The system may further include means for stabilizing motion of the head.
Various imaging modalities have been used in the dentomaxillofacial fields over the past few decades—none with entirely satisfactory results. The system described herein will find its most immediate use in pre-operative site assessment for dental implants and in post-operative assessment of a failed implant. It is further anticipated that the system will lead to the advancement of scientific knowledge and enable further discoveries in TMJ imaging, detection of facial fractures and lesions and diseases of the soft tissue in the head and neck, and imaging used in reconstructive facial surgery.
The above object and other objects, features, and advantages of the present invention are readily apparent from the following detailed description of the best mode for carrying out the invention when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings.
A system of the present invention possess a wide spectrum of properties to be used effectively both in implantology and for the applications described. The properties are summarized below in Table 1.
TABLE 1 1. High contrast-resolution for both bone and soft tissue; 2. High spatial resolution in X, Y, and Z directions; 3. Low radiation dose; 4. Metal streak artifacts removal; 5. Quantification of soft tissue and bone densities and their changes; 6. Full 3-D capabilities; 7. Ability to generate axial, coronal, sagittal, and oblique planes images; 8. Ability to produce undistorted images with linear measurements preserved; 9. High scanning speed to avoid body movement artifacts; 10. Relatively inexpensive; and 11. Easy to use.
None of the previous dentomaxillofacial imaging modalities possesses all these properties, and the practitioner has historically been face with various trade-offs in the decision as to which modality to use.
The new system features all the properties from Table 1, and is therefore expected to become the modality of choice in dental implantology and other clinical tasks that involve the dentomaxillofacial complex.
A preferred system of the invention is generally indicated at 10 in
Cone-Beam Geometry
Compared to the conventional fan-beam geometry, a cone-beam geometry is used in the present invention due to its high efficiency in X-ray use, inherent quickness in volumetric data acquisition, and potential for reducing the cost of CT machines. Conventional fan-beam scans are obtained by illuminating an object with a narrow, fan-shaped beam of X-rays. The X-ray beam generated by the tube is focused to a fan-shaped beam by rejecting the photons outside the fan, resulting in a highly inefficient use of the X-ray photons. Further, the fan-beam approach requires reconstructing the object slice-by-slice and then stacking the slices to obtain a 3-D representation of the object. Each individual slice, therefore, requires a separate scan and separate 2-D reconstruction.
The cone-beam technique, on the other hand, requires only a single scan to capture the entire object with a cone of X-rays 22. The time required to acquire a single cone-beam projection is the same as that required by a single fan-beam projection. But since it takes several fan-beam scans to complete the imaging of a single object, the acquisition time for the fan-beam tends to be much longer than with the cone-beam. This is important because the more time the patient is subjected to the scanning process, the more likely it is that the patient may move or swallow, blurring the scan. Although it may be possible to reduce the acquisition time of the fan-beam method by using a higher power X-ray tube, this increases the cost and bulkiness of the scanner.
Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon Detector (aSi:H) Arrays
The imaging detector 16 used in the system 10 is a large-area array constructed from hydrogenated amorphous silicon (aSi:H) as described in the above-noted application. The detector 16 is a "self-scanned" array of n-i-p photodiodes and thin-film transistor switches. The integrated-flux mode X-ray detector 16 is constructed by mating a flat-panel photodiode array with the appropriate scintillator.
The detector 16 is both inexpensive and capable of generating high-quality images. Essentially the same technology is used to construct active-matrix, flat-panel computer displays and large-area document imagers. They are replacing film and image-intensifiers in conventional radiography and fluoroscopy applications. Several companies currently produce detector arrays for commercial sale. Several years ago it was predicted that these devices could be used for tomography and for attenuation correction applications in PET and SPECT.
Although it has been recently suggested that a special image intensifier can be coupled with a CCD camera for use in a cone-beam-based dental CT scanner, the characteristics of aSi:H-based flat panel detector arrays make them a much better choice for this application. The aSi:H detector arrays offer three distinct advantages. First, the aSi:H flat panel detectors, unlike image intensifiers, do not create geometric distortions that must be addressed when processing the data. Second, flat panel detectors are available in sizes up to 40�40 cm, which is large enough to cover the entire head, whereas image intensifiers have relatively smaller diameters, creating "truncated view" artifacts. Third, flat panel detectors afford a greater dynamic range than that offered by the image intensifier+CCD camera approach.
The a-Si photodiode array/scintillator combination is not the only type of flat-panel imaging detector that can be used in the system 10 described here. In particular, direct detection arrays, which have an X-ray converter such as lead iodide or amorphous selenium (or other suitable converter), can be used. These devices have no intermediate light conversion step and instead convert X-rays to an electrical charge that is read out by the array. Although direct detection devices may eventually offer advantages such as higher spatial resolution, they are at present investigational having detection efficiency that is too low at the energies used in tomography applications.
The vertically-oriented, high-resolution tomograph system 10 is primarily provided for dentomaxillofacial imaging applications. The basic system 10 includes a support structure, generally indicated at 11, including the gantry 20 having an arm 21, which, in this case, adjusts to accommodate different size patients and a rotating arm (as shown in
More detailed drawings of the assemblies 16 and 18 are shown in
To accomplish scanning, the patient sits upright in a chair 40 of the support structure 11. The chair may be vertically adjustable. The patient may, for purposes of reducing head-motion during the scan, bite into an immobilizing apparatus 42 (i.e.,
Correction for the Head Motion
Although the instrument may utilize a device to stabilize the motion of the patient's head, such as the bite plate, as illustrated in
A solution for correcting the head motion artifacts will now be described. The method consists of two parts: 1) a device that measures the relative motion of the head at each projection; and 2) software method that incorporates these measurements into image reconstruction.
The head is treated as a rigid body with six degrees of freedom. The motion of the head is measured with a device depicted in
These measurements are then fed into the computer 12 programmed to perform the image reconstruction method. The movement of the head in the coordinate system of the scanner can be looked at as the (equivalent in magnitude but opposite in direction) movement of the scanner (source 26 and detector 30) in the coordinate system of the head. The expressions for all image reconstruction algorithms (e.g., filtered back projection, statistical image reconstruction methods, etc.) are typically written in the coordinate system of the reconstructed object (in our case the head) and involve the coordinates of the X-ray source 26 and detector 30 in this coordinate system. In the proposed method, these coordinates of the X-ray source 26 and detector 30 are different at each angle, where the difference corresponds to the measured head motion.
Dual-Energy Imaging for Bone-Quality Assessment
In addition to single-energy scanning, where as in conventional instruments attenuation measurements through the object are taken using a single X-ray spectrum, the system of the present invention is capable of acquiring and processing data using two X-ray spectra. The advantages are two. First, it is well known that the technique can provide superior corrections for "beam-hardening" or the fact that the effective energy of the broadband X-ray bremsstrahlung radiation increases as the X-ray beam traverses soft tissue and bone and the lower energy X-rays are preferentially absorbed.
Second, the method, when combined with the appropriate image reconstruction technique (e.g., Penalized Weighted Least Squares), can provide good estimates of bone-mineral contact as a measure of bone quality (which is especially important in dental implantology).
There are numerous methods for accomplishing imaging using two spectra. A potentially important technique can generate two spectra by spatially modulating the X-ray beam using a "shadow mask." This device, a filter 36 that spatially modulates the X-ray beam, has been used in order to acquire dual-energy data simultaneously. The shadow mask 36 used here, however, can contain both filtration elements for dual-energy data acquisition as well as "beam-stops" for estimating residual scatter (see below).
Complete Cone-Beam Scan Orbits
To acquire a set of cone-beam projection data that satisfies the cone-beam completeness conditions, the focal-spot of the X-ray source should intersect every plane through the object. Obviously, a circular orbit does not satisfy these conditions (although usable CT images have been obtained with circular orbits). There are a number of simple orbits that can be used with the described device to satisfy these conditions.
As two examples, the source 26 and the detector 30 can move axially during rotation to accomplish helical cone-beam scanning or the source 26 and the detector 30 can "wobble" to such an extent that the focal-spot of the source 26 intersects every plane passing through the desired axial extent of the scan (
The system 10 is capable of scanning a head along an elliptical orbit, as shown in
Using a "Scout-Scan" to Estimate Exposure and Determine Best Detector Offset
It is common practice to use a low-current scan at the desired X-ray tube potential in order to determine whether patient positioning is proper and to estimate an appropriate exposure. In addition to using the scout scan for these purposes, the system 10 of the invention also uses the scan to determine an appropriate offset for the detector 30 in order to (1) ensure that a complete dataset is acquired, (2) ensure that enough information is available to calculate detector positions such that the tradeoff between X-ray scatter and improved information resulting from measuring some rays twice is appropriate.
Using an Offset Detector to Reduce Necessary Size, Improve Sampling and Decrease X-Ray Scatter
The system 10 is capable of using a detector having a width smaller than that ordinarily required to obtain a complete tomographic dataset. Typically, in fan-beam and cone-beam tomography, the X-ray image or projection of the object in each view must encompass the entire object. This, depending on the system geometry, can require use of a detector that is quite large, which increases system cost. It is well known that a detector of smaller size can be used. Specifically, a detector half of the width can be used along with a single rotation plus an angle equivalent to the cone-angle to acquire a dataset that is essentially complete (in the sense that it contains the same data contained in the scan using a full-size detector for the central slice). Data from the half-detector geometry can be reconstructed using a modified image reconstruction algorithm.
In addition to cost-savings of using such an arrangement, the detector 30 can be combined with source collimation to irradiate only the portion of the object containing line segments connecting the source 26 with the detector 30. This arrangement, as noted below, will reduce X-ray scatter.
Rather than using a detector having a fixed offset, as has been used previously, the detector 30 in this system 10 can move along the track 35 (
First-Order Scatter Reduction Using a Coarse, High-Transparency Detector Grid
Scattering—both Compton and coherent—is the most prevalent interaction mechanism of X-ray photons with tissues of the body. While scattering contributes significantly to the observed attenuation of a beam of X-ray photons through the body, a large fraction of the scattered photons escape the body and are subsequently detected at the X-ray detector. Recording these photons, whose direction has been altered considerably from the incident X-ray beam, leads to serious reductions in the contrast-resolution of X-ray CT.
In conventional fan-beam or spiral-scan tomography, Compton-scatter is reduced by two methods: 1) the X-ray source is finely collimated so that it only illuminates a narrow region subtended by the strip-detector (either single- or multi-slice) used in these systems, and 2) additional detector collimation may be used to reduce scatter. The additional collimation may either be a detector slit or a set of fan-beam channels, which in older xenon gas-based detectors were actually part of the detector.
In cone-beam tomography, scatter can be much more severe because the source irradiates a much larger section of the object. Therefore, scatter comes not only from a narrow axial region (or slice) but also from the entire irradiated axial extent. In conventional film radiography, scatter can be reduced by using a variety of scatter rejection grids. These grids are usually comprised of alternating strips of aluminum and lead foil. The strips are focused linearly to the focal spot of the X-ray source and reduce the detection of scattered radiation because, as with the use of collimation for spiral and conventional CT, the ray-path of scatter will typically not come a direction consistent with the X-ray source and will therefore be absorbed by one of the lead strips.
The problems with using these grids for cone-beam tomography is that their transparency—the ratio of the exiting flux to the incident X-ray flux—is relatively low due to both a large number of lead strips (typically 85 or 103 per inch), which must be relatively thick to absorb X-rays of the appropriate energies, and the aluminum used as the interspacer.
An effective scatter rejection grid with much higher transparency can be constructed with lead foil and machinable polyacrylimide foam—a technique that has been used for constructing slice collimators for SPECT. The basic construction is similar to the conventional grid for radiography described above: each grid or collimator 32 is a stack of absorbing septa 31, focused on the focal-spot of the X-ray source assembly 18, separated by a low-attenuation spacer 34 as shown in
Another method for constructing the crossed grids is to cut slots halfway through each absorbing septum in order to accept corresponding slots cut into orthogonal septa. This results in a largely self-supporting grid (which can be placed within a rigid frame around the perimeter for stability) requiring no foam supports. An additional advantage is that the depth of the grid is reduced by a factor of two.
Yet another technique involves using appropriately corrugated absorbing strips (with corrugations focused on the focal spot of the X-ray source) that are tapered in two dimensions such that the corrugations are focused on the X-ray source. These corrugated septa are then separated by planar septa. This technique is well known in the construction of collimators for nuclear medicine gamma cameras.
Other techniques used in nuclear medicine collimator construction such as casting can also be employed to obtain high-transparency, coarse scatter-rejection grids.
Scatter Reduction Using Source Collimation
The larger the extent of the irradiated portion of the object, the greater the scatter from the object. It is highly desirable from the viewpoints of both reducing patient dose and scattered X-rays that the source only irradiates the necessary portion of the object. In conventional radiography systems this is accomplished by using an adjustable source collimator to restrict the radiation field to the desired region of the object. As noted above, the system described here can use a detector having a width smaller than necessary for acquisition of a complete tomographic dataset. When used in conjunction with a source collimator that only irradiates the portion of the object "seen" by the detector less Compton scatter will be generated (and detected) than in a system using a full-size detector.
As shown in
Correction for Residual Scatter
A significant fraction of photons will scatter multiple times within the object and many of these can pass the scatter-rejection grid 32. To reduce the average effect of detected scatter on reconstructed images, it is desirable to employ a method that measures the distribution of residual scatter. Once the mean distribution has been estimated, it can be removed from the data.
The residual detected scatter can be measured by placing a series of beam-stops or shadow masks (i.e., shadow mask 36) between the X-ray source 26 and the object. In the absence of scatter, the shadow of the beam-stops on the detector 30 should record zero photons. Photons that scatter in the object and that pass the scatter rejecting grid 32 will, however, result in some signal in these regions that should have none. If the shadow mask 36 does not perturb the X-ray flux significantly, the signal in these shadow regions can be taken as an estimate of the residual scatter detected at these points. This method has been previously employed for removing scatter from conventional projection radiographs.
In contrast to the aforementioned method, which requires two scans—one with and without the shadow mask 36, or two with the shadow mask 36 in different positions—it is possible to leave the shadow mask 36 in place during the entire scan, which has three desirable consequences. First, the x-ray flux remains unchanged between the scatter measurement and the measurement from which the scatter-free projection is estimated from since they are performed simultaneously. This feature simplifies the correction procedure.
Second, since the shadow mask 36 need not be moved, the overall design is simplified. Finally, since it is not necessary to expose the patient twice to obtain both the diagnostic information and a measure of the scattered radiation, the overall radiation dose to the patient is reduced.
There are a number of ways shadow masks can be designed to allow this, one example is shown in
Referring to
1. With the shadow mask 36 between the source assembly 18 and the detector assembly 16 and no object in place, a "blank scan" is taken to determine where the shadows of the mask 36 lie on the detector 30.
2. This data is then processed to make two digital masks. The first defines regions-of-interest (ROIs) slightly smaller than the actual shadows. These ROIs will be used to estimate the residual scatter (
3. The patient is placed in the tomograph system 10 and scanned with the shadow mask 36 in place (
4. Using the first mask, the scattered radiation is estimated by the values at each view angle or frame of the patient scan by the values in each frame at every non-zero mask position.
5. The scatter at zero mask positions is then estimated using an interpolation scheme (
6. The scattered information is either explicitly or implicitly (e.g., during the 3D image reconstruction process) subtracted from the patient scan. Using the second mask, information in the shadow regions of the patient scan is "restored" (i.e., as if there were no shadow mask present). The preferred method for restoring this information is to use a penalized, weighted least-squares or penalized maximum likelihood 3D image reconstruction where the mask determines regions of missing data. Alternatively, the information can be estimated on a frame-by-frame basis (shown in
As noted, there are not only a variety of masks that can be employed but also a variety of estimation/restoration/reconstruction scenarios that can be used.
Moving or "Dithering" Position of Detector to Reduce Effects of Detector Non-Uniformity
Detectors always have small spatial non-uniformities of response. Sometimes these can be calibrated out by acquiring a sequence of images with the X-ray source off in order to obtain the "dark signal" or pedestal and another set with the X-ray source on with no object in place ("blank scan") for determining the response or gain of each pixel. Often, however, the signal from a pixel may vary unpredictably when scanning the object. If not taken into account, these signals tend to add coherently in a conventional fan- or cone-beam scanning geometry and will generate rings of higher or lower density in reconstructed images. The magnitude of the ring depends both on the magnitude of the detector defect and its spatial sharpness: sharp-edged defects will generate much larger artifacts than smooth-edged defects.
A way to "smooth" any detector defect is to move the detector 30 along its track 35 a small amount randomly between each frame. This would typically be accomplished by moving the detector 30 under motor control between frames a random—but known—amount corresponding to a maximum of roughly �20 pixels.
The data acquired in such a fashion are then shifted in the computer 12 after each image frame is collected such that it appears as if the detector 30 as in a single position. Due to the random detector movement, non-uniformities that previously added coherently to produce disturbing visual distortions in the reconstructed images now do not significantly affect reconstructions.
In cone-beam scanning, the more complete orbits described above (i.e., helical and wobbled) further reduce the effect of isolated detector artifacts.
Detector Masking for Pedestal Estimation During Scanning
With the area detector 30, the pedestal or "dark signal" can vary considerably during the scan due to sensitivity of the readout electronics, which are proximal to the detector panel, to small variations in temperature. In ordinary radiography, these pedestal changes present little problem. In computed tomography, however, the changes may be larger than the signal of interest and it is therefore important that they be estimated throughout the scanning interval so that their effects can be removed either during or after the scanning. The varying pedestals in these devices are largely due to the readout amplifiers for each channel. In a device currently in use, each amplifier reads out a column of 256 channels (pixels) with half placed at the bottom edge and the remainder at the top edge of the detector (the detector has an array of 512�512 pixels). If the temperature of the readout chip changes, the offsets are changed for every pixel the amplifier reads out (e.g., an entire column).
Referring now to
There are numerous methods for estimating the pedestal of each channel from the masked-channel information; the simplest assumes that the change in pedestal for each readout channel is the same for each detector element using a particular readout amplifier (i.e., a row or column of the array depending on orientation) and corrects each digitized detector value by the same digital pedestal change.
An alternative means for accomplishing this without detector masking—assuming the electronics of the detector 30 can be modified—is to have one or several electrical channels on each chip containing readout amplifiers not connected to the array (i.e., everything is similar to active channels but there is no possibility of a signal). These dark channels can then serve as estimates for the change in pedestal for each readout chip during scanning.
Generating Panoramic Images or "Conventional Tomograms" from Reconstructed CT Data
Once the 3D volume of attenuation coefficients have been reconstructed from the projection data, the information can be reprojected so that it emulates that acquired using other, more conventional devices such as panoramic X-ray machines or conventional linear tomographs used in dentomaxillofacial imaging. This is useful both for comparing data acquired with the system 10 to previous patient scans and for providing a simple method for "volume rendering" or summarizing the 3D volumetric data in a format familiar to the clinician.
Generating the scans corresponding to those acquired using more conventional devices is summarized by the following procedure:
1. 3D patient data is acquired and reconstructed using the system 10. The result is a volume of linear attenuation coefficients at a particular energy.
2. A linear system model describing how a panoramic X-ray machine or linear tomography generates images from an object is used to map the reconstructed image volume into projections that would have been acquired using a conventional system. This provides the sum of linear attenuation along source-detector paths collected in the conventional instrument.
3. This information is multiplied by −1 and exponentiated to provide the X-ray attenuation the conventional system would have observed. The information can then be displayed digitally or printed on paper or film for presentation.
The key to the above procedure is the system model describing the imaging characteristics (geometry, etc.) for each panoramic system or linear tomography. These linear models can be constructed using methods well known to developers of computed tomography software.
A system constructed in accordance with the present invention may include one or more of the following:
Extensive simulations and a lab-bench prototype model have been constructed and used for imaging phantoms and cadaver heads in order to assess the utility of the system 10 in treatment planning for dental implants. The spatial resolution of the system 10 is approximately 400 microns FWHM in all three spatial dimensions. Moreover, complete data is acquired and both single- and dual-energy scanning have been accomplished. This is in contrast to conventional spiral CT where spatial resolution is closer to 1 mm in the transaxial direction and 1.5-2 mm in the axial direction. Four tomographic slices of a human head are shown in
It is certainly possible to construct a small X-ray CT scanner for imaging the head, neck and extremities in a variety of ways. For example, one can attach a large enough amorphous silicon detector to a rotating gantry and use no additional scatter correction hardware or software and obtain images that may be adequate for planning dental implants in many cases. Nevertheless, when it is desirable to be more quantitative to accurately assess bone quality, for instance, many of the features described above such as dual-energy imaging, scatter correction, and pedestal estimation methods will prove important.
It is also possible to use detectors other than amorphous silicon imaging arrays. For example, image intensifiers and CCD cameras can be and have been used (TomCAT). Nevertheless, simple devices based on these detectors still suffer problems such as scatter, detector size issues, tomographic completeness problems, etc. The methods described above are solutions to those common problems and most do not depend on the type of detector used.
While embodiments of the invention have been illustrated and described, it is not intended that these embodiments illustrate and describe all possible forms of the invention. Rather, the words used in the specification are words of description rather than limitation, and it is understood that various changes may be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.
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|International Classification
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|8 Oct 2008
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