CT Angiography of the Head-and-Neck Vessels Acquired with Low Tube Voltage, Low Iodine, and Iterative Image Reconstruction: Clinical Evaluation of Radiation Dose and Image Quality

We aimed to assess the effectiveness and feasibility of head-and-neck Computed Tomography Angiography (CTA) with low tube voltage and low concentration contrast media combined with iterative reconstruction algorithm.92 patients were randomly divided into group A and B: patients in group A received a conventional scan with 120 kVp and contrast media of 320 mgI/ml. Patients in group B, 80 kVp and contrast media of 270 mgI/ml were used along with iterative reconstruction algorithm techniques. Image quality, radiation dose and the effectively consumed iodine amount between two groups were analyzed and compared.Image quality of CTA of head-and-neck vessels obtained from patients in group B was significantly improved quantitatively and qualitatively. In addition, CT attenuation values in group B were also significantly higher than that in group A (p<0.001). Furthermore, compared with the protocol whereby 120 kVp and 320 mgI/dl were administrated, the mean radiation dose and consumed iodine amount in protocol B were also reduced by 50% and 15.6%, respectively (p