Age-related sensitivity deterioration evaluation of positron emission tomography utilizing cross-calibration factor measurement data

Age-related deterioration in positron emission tomography (PET) systems can be monitored using cross-calibration scans for scanner calibration. This study aimed to evaluate changes in the sensitivity of a PET system over time using routinely collected cross-calibration factor (CCF) measurement data and NEMA sensitivity measurement data acquired at our facility. We used CCF measurement data acquired over eight years, from 2016 to 2023. The count rates were calculated from raw data. The NEMA sensitivity measurements were also performed in 2017 and 2024 to compare with the sensitivities obtained from the CCF measurements. The PET images were reconstructed using the CCF data. A region of interest (ROI) was placed at the center of the PET images and count rates from the PET images were obtained. The sensitivity changes in the CCF data showed a linear decrease in sensitivity over eight years, with a mean annual reduction rate of approximately 2.0%. A comparison of the NEMA sensitivity measurements indicated a decrease in sensitivity, with a 12% reduction over eight eight years. The sensitivity was higher at the center of the axial field of view than at the edges. The ROI data also showed a linear decrease in sensitivity. This is consistent with the CCF data. Additionally, the coefficient of variation increased towards the edge of the slice. By utilizing the CCF measurement data, we obtained age-related changes in the PET system, suggesting that the PET system used in our facility may experience an annual sensitivity deterioration of approximately 2.0%.