Adenosine-stress dynamic myocardial perfusion imaging using 128-slice dual-source CT in patients with normal body mass indices: effect of tube voltage, tube current, and iodine concentration on image quality and radiation dose

The aim of this study was to evaluate the image quality and radiation dose in adenosine-stress dynamic myocardial CT perfusion (CTP) imaging using different tube voltages, tube current settings, and contrast materials containing different iodine concentrations in subjects with normal body mass indices (BMI). We included 92 patients (BMI range, 18.5–24.8) who underwent dynamic CTP for the evaluation of coronary artery disease using a 128-slice dual-source computed tomography. The protocols employed the following dynamic scan parameters: protocol I with 100 kV, fixed tube current (FTC), and medium-concentration contrast material (MC, 350 mg iodine/mL); protocol II with 100 kV, automatic tube current modulation (ATCM), and MC; protocol III with 100 kV, ATCM, and high-concentration contrast material (HC, 400 mg iodine/mL); protocol IV with 80 kV, adopted FTC, and HC. Subjective image quality on a 1–3 point scale and objective image quality with respect to the contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR) and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) were assessed. Protocol IV showed higher CNR and SNR than the other protocols (P < 0.01), while the CNR and SNR values did not significantly differ among the other three protocols. There was no significant difference in subjective image quality among the protocols. The radiation dose in protocol IV was the lowest among the protocols (P < 0.01), while protocol IV resulted in a 54 % overall reduction in mean effective radiation dose compared with protocol I. Dynamic myocardial CTP performed at 80 kV with adapted FTC provided high CNR and SNR while preserving subjective image quality and reducing radiation exposure.