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C Thieke

Publications and source records attributed to C Thieke.

6 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

An enhanced block matching algorithm for fast elastic registration in adaptive radiotherapy.

Image registration has many medical applications in diagnosis, therapy planning and therapy. Especially for time-adaptive radiotherapy, an efficient and accurate elastic registration of images acquired for treatment planning, and at the time of the actual treatment, is highly desirable. Therefore, we developed a fully automatic and fast block matching algorithm which identifies a set of anatomical landmarks in a 3D CT dataset and relocates them in another CT dataset by maximization of local correlation coefficients in the frequency domain. To transform the complete dataset, a smooth interpolation between the landmarks is calculated by modified thin-plate splines with local impact. The concept of the algorithm allows separate processing of image discontinuities like temporally changing air cavities in the intestinal track or rectum. The result is a fully transformed 3D planning dataset (planning CT as well as delineations of tumour and organs at risk) to a verification CT, allowing evaluation and, if necessary, changes of the treatment plan based on the current patient anatomy without time-consuming manual re-contouring. Typically the total calculation time is less than 5 min, which allows the use of the registration tool between acquiring the verification images and delivering the dose fraction for online corrections. We present verifications of the algorithm for five different patient datasets with different tumour locations (prostate, paraspinal and head-and-neck) by comparing the results with manually selected landmarks, visual assessment and consistency testing. It turns out that the mean error of the registration is better than the voxel resolution (2 x 2 x 3 mm(3)). In conclusion, we present an algorithm for fully automatic elastic image registration that is precise and fast enough for online corrections in an adaptive fractionated radiation treatment course.

Algorithms↗
PubMed2006

DAVID--a translucent multi-wire transmission ionization chamber for in vivo verification of IMRT and conformal irradiation techniques.

Permanent in vivo verification of IMRT photon beam profiles by a radiation detector with spatial resolution, positioned on the radiation entrance side of the patient, has not been clinically available so far. In this work we present the DAVID system, which is able to perform this quality assurance measurement while the patient is treated. The DAVID system is a flat, multi-wire transmission-type ionization chamber, placed in the accessory holder of the linear accelerator and constructed from translucent materials in order not to interfere with the light field. Each detection wire of the chamber is positioned exactly in the projection line of a MLC leaf pair, and the signal of each wire is proportional to the line integral of the ionization density along this wire. Thereby, each measurement channel essentially presents the line integral of the ionization density over the opening width of the associated leaf pair. The sum of all wire signals is a measure of the dose-area product of the transmitted photon beam and of the total radiant energy administered to the patient. After the dosimetric verification of an IMRT plan, the values measured by the DAVID system are stored as reference values. During daily treatment the signals are re-measured and compared to the reference values. A warning is output if there is a deviation beyond a threshold. The error detection capability is a leaf position error of less than 1 mm for an isocentric 1 cm x 1 cm field, and of 1 mm for an isocentric 20 cm x 20 cm field.

Humans↗
PubMed2006

Kilovoltage CT using a linac-CT scanner combination.

Modern radiotherapy techniques such as intensity modulation are capable of generating complex dose distributions whose high dose areas tightly conform to the tumour target volume, sparing critical organs even when they are located in close proximity. This potential can only be exploited to its full extent when the accumulated dose actually delivered over the complete treatment course is sufficiently close to the dose computed on the initial CT scan used for treatment planning. Exact patient repositioning is mandatory, but also other sources of error, e.g. changes of the patient's anatomy under therapy, should be taken into account. At the German Cancer Research Center, we use a combination of a linear accelerator and a CT scanner installed in one room and sharing the same couch. It allows the quantification and correction of interfractional variations between planning and treatment delivery. In this paper, we describe treatments of prostate, paraspinal and head and neck tumours. All patients were immobilized by customized fixation devices and treated in a stereotactic setup. For each patient, frequent CT scans were taken during the treatment course. Each scan was compared with the original planning CT using manual checks and automatic rigid matching algorithms. Depending on the individual case, the adaptation to variations was carried out offline after several fractions or in real-time between the CT scan and linac irradiation. We discuss the techniques for detecting and correcting interfractional errors and outline the procedural steps of a linac-CT scanner-supported radiation treatment course.

Humans↗
PubMed1999

Chromosome aberrations induced in human lymphocytes by 3.45 MeV alpha particles analyzed by premature chromosome condensation.

Premature chromosome condensation (PCC) experiments using human lymphocytes with centromere staining have shown that after exposure to 3.45 MeV alpha-particle radiation, the full number of dicentric chromosomes appears when the cell fusion protocol is applied immediately after irradiation. In this case, the time available for repair and misrepair of DNA damage is only about 30 min. The number of dicentrics does not change with a further increase in the time available for chromatin rearrangement. This fast response confirms the expectation based on our previous experiments using PCC with 150 kV X rays in which the alpha component of the yield of dicentrics was found to appear when the cell fusion protocol was applied immediately after irradiation, whereas the beta component was delayed by several hours. The time constant for rejoining of the excess acentric chromosome fragments is found to be donor-specific and not to differ for alpha particles and X rays, but alpha-particle radiation leaves a larger fraction of the excess acentric fragments unrejoined. The RBEs of the 3.45 MeV alpha-particle radiation compared to 150 kV X rays, evaluated for the alpha component for the yield of dicentrics and for the yield of unrepaired acentric fragments, have almost equal values of about 4. This is consistent with data in the literature on chromosome aberrations observed in metaphase that show the equality of the RBE values for production of dicentrics and acentric fragments. Our experimental results concerning the fast kinetics of the alpha component of the yield of exchange-type chromosome aberrations are not consistent with Lea's pairwise lesion interaction model, and they support the proposed alternative mechanism of lesion-nonlesion interaction between chromatin regions carrying clustered DNA damage and intact chromatin regions.

Alpha Particles↗
PubMed1984

[Heart wall rupture in acute myocardial infarct. An autopsy study in comparison with infarcts without rupture].

Among 237 patients who died of acute myocardial infarction (4% of the 5,390 autopsies from 1975 to 1979) 43 cases (18%) with a rupture of the cardiac wall were found. These 43 cases of rupture were compared with 43 non-rupture cases of the same period. In difference to the non-rupture cases the average weight of the heart was smaller. Myocardial scars, additional basic diseases and a lung oedema were rarer; an extended region of the infarction and an anamnestically known chronic ischemic heart disease were observed significantly more frequently. In what respect these and other analysed factors are responsible for the rupture mechanism, cannot be clearly estimated. Apart from a continuing hypertension as well as a relatively smaller weight of the heart and the absence of myocardial scars the extension of the area of the infarction as well as the possible effect of granulocytic enzymes in the area of the infarction appear significant for the origin of a heart rupture.

Adult↗