Artefact reduction in optoacoustic tomographic imaging by estimating the distribution of acoustic scatterers

The quality of optoacoustic tomographic reconstructions can be severely affected by acoustic reflections or scattering arising at interfaces of highly mismatched organs, such as bones, lungs, or other air-containing cavities. We present a procedure to reduce the associated artefacts based on estimation of the acoustic scatterers distribution within the imaged object. Signals generated by a strong optical absorber are processed and used in a weighted back-projection algorithm. Experimental results in a tissue-mimicking phantom clearly demonstrate improved performance as compared to the case in which no information on the distribution of acoustic scatterers is available.