Abstract: Objective We propose a method using total variation (TV) regularization in deconvolution for partial volume
correction in PET imaging. In the degraded image model, we used TV regularization procedure in Van Cittert (VC) and
Richardson-Lucy (RL) deconvolution algorithms. These methods were tested in simulated NCAT images and images of NEMA
NU4-2008 IQ phantom and tumor-bearing mouse scanned by Simens Invoen microPET. The simulated experiment and
tumor-bearing mouse experiment showed that the algorithms using TV regularization provided superior qualitative and
quantitative appearance compared with traditional VC and RL algorithms. When the mean intensity of the tumor increased by
(10 ± 1.8)% , the SD increase percentage was decreased from 49.98% to 14.26% and from 42.76% to 4.70%, suggesting the
efficiency of the proposed algorithms for reducing PVEs in PET.