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. 2025 May;50(5):2321-2332.
doi: 10.1007/s00261-024-04686-x. Epub 2024 Nov 19.

Evaluation of SR-DLR in low-dose abdominal CT: superior image quality and noise reduction

Akio Tamura  1 , Eisuke Mukaida  2 , Yoshitaka Ota  3 , Shun Abe  3 , Makoto Orii  2 , Yoshiro Ieko  2 , Kunihiro Yoshioka  2
Affiliations

Evaluation of SR-DLR in low-dose abdominal CT: superior image quality and noise reduction

Akio Tamura et al. Abdom Radiol (NY). 2025 May.

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the effectiveness of super-resolution deep learning reconstruction (SR-DLR) in low-dose abdominal computed tomography (CT) imaging compared with hybrid iterative reconstruction (HIR) and conventional deep learning reconstruction (cDLR) algorithms.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed abdominal CT scans performed using a low-dose protocol. Three different image reconstruction algorithms-HIR, cDLR, and SR-DLR-were applied to the same raw image data. Objective evaluations included noise magnitude and contrast-to-noise ratio (CNR), as well as noise power spectrum (NPS) and edge rise slope (ERS). Subjective evaluations were performed by radiologists, who assessed image quality in terms of noise, artifacts, sharpness, and overall diagnostic utility.

Results: Raw CT image data were obtained from 35 patients (mean CTDIvol 11.0 mGy; mean DLP 344.8 mGy/cm). cDLR yielded the lowest noise levels and highest CNR (p < 0.001). However, SR-DLR outperformed cDLR in terms of noise texture and resolution, achieving the lowest NPS peak and highest ERS (p < 0.001 and p = 0.005, respectively). Subjectively, SR-DLR was rated highest across all categories, including noise, artifacts, sharpness, and overall image quality, with statistically significant differences compared to cDLR and HIR (p < 0.001).

Conclusion: SR-DLR was the most effective reconstruction algorithm for low-dose abdominal CT imaging, offering superior image quality and noise reduction compared to cDLR and HIR. This suggests that SR-DLR can enhance the reliability and diagnostic accuracy of abdominal imaging, particularly in low-dose settings, making it a valuable tool in clinical practice.

Keywords: Abdominal imaging; Computed tomography; Deep learning; Image reconstruction; Radiographic image enhancement.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declarations. Competing interests: Kunihiro Yoshioka has a contract to conduct academic research in cooperation with Canon Medical Systems Corporation.

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