B.S., Physics, Grinnell College, 1977
M.S., Physics, Wake Forest University, 1983
Ph.D., Physics, University of Virginia, 1990

University of Virginia Department of Radiology
Box 170
Charlottesville, VA 22908

mbwilliams@virginia.edu

Research Interests

The general area of research in my lab is the design, development, and optimization of medical imaging technologies. The following projects are underway:

1) Dual modality breast imaging: We are developing an integrated imaging system that combines the sensitivity of digital mammography with the specificity of scintimammography in a single compact, upright unit. The imaging system functions by obtaining mirror-image x-ray transmission and gamma emission images concurrently with the breast in a single configuration. Co-registration then correlates the gamma and x-ray images to within a fraction of a pixel.

2) Molecular imaging system for small animal research: We are developing a tomographic imaging system that permits simultaneous acquisition of high resolution functional (SPECT) and structural (x-ray CT) images from mice and rats. The resulting fused image correlates the radiotracer distribution with the morphological information provided by the x-ray data. A similar 2-dimensional system is being routinely utilized as a component of the Small Animal Multimodality Imaging Center for mouse and rat studies in gene expression imaging, radiation oncology and diagnostic radiology.

3) Evaluation of basic imaging properties of early commercial systems for digital breast imaging. Characteristics being quantified include sensitivity, linearity, spatial resolution, noise properties, and detective quantum efficiency. We are working with a consortium of detector physicists located across North America to develop uniform evaluation methods and to produce a combined data set.

Recent Publications

Williams MB, Raghunathan P, More MJ, Seibert JA, Kwan A, Lo JY, Samei E, Ranger NT, Fajardo LL, McGruder A, McGruder SM, Maidment AD, Yaffe MJ, Bloomquist A, Mawdsley GE
Optimization of exposure parameters in full field digital mammography.

Williams MB, Krupinski EA, Strauss KJ, Breeden WK, Rzeszotarski MS, Applegate K, Wyatt M, Bjork S, Seibert JA
Digital radiography image quality: image acquisition.

Trotta BM, Stolin AV, Williams MB, Gay SB, Brody AS, Altes TA
Characterization of the relation between CT technical parameters and accuracy of quantification of lung attenuation on quantitative chest CT.

Berr SS, Xu Y, Roy RJ, Kundu B, Williams MB, French BA
Images in cardiovascular medicine. Serial multimodality assessment of myocardial infarction in mice using magnetic resonance imaging and micro-positron emission tomography provides complementary information on the progression of scar formation.

Williams MB, Yaffe MJ, Maidment AD, Martin MC, Seibert JA, Pisano ED
Image quality in digital mammography: image acquisition.

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