Multimodality and Advanced Biomedical Imaging for Clinical and Research Applications

Driven in particular by the availability of ever more refined imaging modalities — such as faster and higher resolution CT and MR, or hybrid PET/CT and SPECT/CT — and by a marked increase in computing power, advanced biomedical imaging — e.g. through its multidimensional and multimodal paradigms — is taking an ever bigger place in both research and clinical routine, and for both diagnostic applications and therapy management. While human modalities are widely publicized, there is a similar plethora of imaging systems for small animals, which permits relatively fast translation of successful image-based protocols from research evaluation to the clinic. Because of their characteristics and the need for more detailed information about normal vs. diseased tissues, modern modalities produce huge amounts of information and images. The only way to digest these is through advanced paradigms that combine or reduce the complexity of the information so that it can be interpreted by normal human beings. This presentation will introduce techniques and research or clinical applications of advanced imaging for both animals and humans.