Comparison of image quality and lesion diagnosis in abdominopelvic unenhanced CT between reduced-dose CT using deep learning post-processing and standard-dose CT using iterative reconstruction: A prospective study.

Abstract Purpose To compare image quality and lesion diagnosis between reduced-dose abdominopelvic unenhanced computed tomography (CT) using deep learning (DL) post-processing and standard-dose CT using iterative reconstruction (IR). Method Totally 251 patients underwent two consecutive abdominopelvic unenhanced CT scans of the same range, including standard and reduced doses, respectively. In group A, standard-dose data were reconstructed by (blend 30%) IR. In group B, reduced-dose data were reconstructed by filtered back projection reconstruction to obtain group B1 images, and post-processed using the DL algorithm (NeuAI denosing, Neusoft medical, Shenyang, China) with 50% and 100% weights to obtain group B2 and B3 images, respectively. Then, CT values of the liver, the second lumbar vertebral centrum, the erector spinae and abdominal subcutaneous fat were measured. CT values, noise levels, signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs), contrast-to-noise ratios (CNRs), radiation doses and subjective scores of image quality were compared. Subjective evaluations of low-density liver lesions were compared by diagnostic results from enhanced CT or Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Results Groups B3 and B1 showed the lowest and highest noise levels, respectively (P  Conclusions Reduced-dose abdominopelvic unenhanced CT combined with DL post-processing could ensure image quality and satisfy diagnostic needs.