A Continuous Flow Input Function Detector for H2 15O Blood Flow Studies in Positron Emission Tomography
A plastic scintillator detection system has been developed for the measurement of arterial blood H2 15O concentrations in positron emission tomographic (PET) local cerebral blood flow (lCBF) studies. The system uses a peristaltic pump to continually pull arterial blood from a radial artery through the plastic scintillator for the detection of the oxygen-15 positrons. To correct for the smearing of the arterial blood curve shape due to laminar flow in the pump tubing, a deconvolution technique has been developed.