| Summary: | Over recent years, in the field of nuclear medicine, advances in the development of small field of view (SFOV) gamma cameras have been increased. High resolution compact gamma cameras are designed to be used in intraoperative medical imaging procedures such as in head and neck sentinel node biopsies or for small organ imaging such as thyroid investigations. SFOV imaging can offer advantages over large field of view (LFOV) cameras in spatial resolution and sensitivity although, there is a trade-off between spatial resolution and sensitivity. Also SFOV cameras are highly favourable in terms of reduced size and weight in comparison to the standard gamma camera. Over the last two decades, advances in semiconductor detector technology have now reached the point where they are sufficiently sensitive to be the basis of SFOV cameras for nuclear medicine imaging systems. A new concept for a medical imaging system is presented, the Hybrid Gamma Camera (HGC). The performance characteristics of the HGC are evaluated following modified quality assurance protocols. The Cadmium-Telluride (CdTe) XRI-UNO and the HEXITEC semiconductor (CdTe) detector are also investigated. Their performance is compared to that of the scintillator-based Hybrid Gamma Camera (HGC). A novel dual gamma near infrared (NIR) fluorescence camera has been developed and is described. Preliminary in vivo and in vitro studies were undertaken to demonstrate the suitability of the system for fluorescent imaging. This dual modality gamma-NIR system has been proposed as one possibility for improving surgical utility.
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