Enhancing the Diagnostic Accuracy of Amyloid PET: The Impact of MR-Guided PET Reconstruction

Motivation: Uptake in the supratentorial cortex is indicative of amyloid positivity. Due to PET's low spatial resolution and image noise, there can be inconsistencies in ratings among trained readers. Goal(s): To investigate whether PET reconstruction with MR priors can improve the consistency of amyloid PET scan readings among trained readers. Approach: A set of 106 18F-florbetaben (amyloid) PET/MRI exams were reconstructed using both conventional PET reconstruction and PET reconstruction with MR priors. These reconstructed images were then rated by 3 trained readers. Results: Fifty percent of cases were rated inconsistently with conventional PET reconstruction. This number decreased to 19% with reconstruction using MR priors. Impact: Given how common inconsistent ratings are for amyloid-PET, methods that improve the ability to distinguish intermediate amyloid levels may be valuable for the widespread use of this modality.