Total variation regulated EM algorithm [SPECT reconstruction]

An iterative Bayesian reconstruction algorithm based on the total variation (TV) norm constraint is proposed. The motivation for using TV regularization is that it is extremely effective for recovering edges of images. This paper extends the TV norm minimization constraint to the field of SPECT image reconstruction with a Poisson noise model. The regularization norm is included in the OSL-EM (one step late expectation maximization) algorithm. Unlike many other edge-preserving regularization techniques, the TV based method depends one parameter. Reconstructions of computer simulations and patient data show that the proposed algorithm has the capacity to smooth noise and maintain sharp edges without introducing over/under shoots and ripples around the edges.