COMPUTERIZED TOMOGRAPHY (CT) FLUOROSCOPY IMAGING SYSTEM USING A STANDARD INTENSITY CT SCAN WITH REDUCED INTENSITY CT SCAN OVERLAYS

摘要

A method for providing CT fluoroscopy of an internal procedure site during a medical procedure so as to visualize patient anatomy and a high-contrast medical element during the procedure without subjecting the patient to unacceptable quantities of X-ray radiation, comprising: (1) taking a standard intensity CT scan of the internal procedure site; (2) taking a reduced intensity CT scan of the procedure site while the high-contrast medical element is inserted into the procedure site; (3) extracting the high-contrast medical element portion of the reduced intensity CT scan from the reduced intensity CT scan; (4) merging the high-contrast medical element portion of the reduced intensity CT scan extracted in Step 3 with the standard intensity CT scan of the procedure site taken in Step 1 so as to provide a composite CT scan; (5) displaying the composite CT scan; and (6) returning to either Step 1 or Step 2.