Digital breast tomosynthesis imaging using total variation and non-local means

Digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT) generates 3D images of breast by using 2D projections taken from a limited view angle. Due to the ill-posed nature of the image reconstruction in DBT alternative image reconstruction methods have been introduced for better image quality. In this study, an efficient DBT image reconstruction algorithm has been introduced. The proposed method was formulated as combination of algebraic reconstruction technique (ART), total variation (TV) and non-local means (NLM). A real DBT data set and a commercially available 3D phantom were used for performance evaluations. Results of our study showed that ART+TV+NLM helped in obtaining better reconstructed images than those obtained by ART and ART+TV in terms of reduced background noise, out-of-plane artifacts while keeping the details well-preserved.