Low dose CT perfusion: filtering the way to the clinic

CT perfusion is a method in which multiple CT scans are taken in succession, after contrast medium has been administered to the patient. This allows the radiologist to see where and when blood enters body parts. The disadvantage of this method is that many CT scans must be made, which results in a lot of radiation for patients. To limit the total amount of radiation, the radiation per CT scan must remain small. However, this leads to low image quality. This dissertation shows that a filter method specific for CT perfusion can improve this low image quality without losing much resolution. This confirms the potential of this filter method. As a follow-up study, the filter was adapted for use in CT perfusion for diagnosis of brain infarcts. The filter showed promising results for better visualization of the infarct. This thesis helps to clinically enable more CT perfusion protocols.