Purpose: To assess the MPR image quality in variable reconstrution parameters with multislice helical CT in the head and neck neoplasms and to explore the optimal reconstruction parameters.

Methods and Materials: Sixty-seven patients with head and neck tumor were scanned with 1.25-mm collimation and pitch of 0.875 using GE Lightspeed Ultra 8 slices helical CT. All patients were divided into two groups. In the first group (n=28), 1.25-mm-thick and 2.5-mm-thick section with 50% section overlap were reconstructed, the MPR images were obtained with 1-mm, 2-mm, 3-mm, and 5-mm reformations. In the second group (n=39), 1.25-mm-thick section with 0%, 25%, 50%, and 75% section overlap were reconstructed, while the MPR images were obtained with 1-mm reformation. The images of each group were submitted to two blinded radiologists who separatedly ranked them from best to worst.

Results: In the first group , the MPR image quality of 1-mm reformation with 1.25-mm reconstruction was superior to the others to reveal soft tissue, lesion, and bone (P<0.01). The artifacts viewed on MPR images were slight and had no influence on diagnosis. In the second group, the MPR image quality of 50% section overlap was similar to 75% section overlap (P>0.05) and superior to the others to reveal soft tissue and lesions , was inferior to 75% section overlap to reveal bone (P<0.05) , was less than 75% slice overlap in artifacts (P<0.01).

Conclusion: 1.25-mm-thick reconstruction with 50% section overlap and 1-mm reformation were the optimal parameters to reveal soft tissue, lesion, bone , and had less artifacts in the MPR images with multislice helical CT in the head and neck neoplasms.