Lung ultrasound surface wave elastography

Abstract

Lung ultrasound surface wave elastography (LUSWE) was developed for noninvasively measuring superficial lung tissue stiffness. In LUSWE, a 0.1 second harmonic vibration is generated on the chest wall of a subject using a handheld vibrator. An ultrasound probe is aligned with the vibration excitation in the same intercostal space to measure the generated surface wave propagation on the lung. A human subject is examined in a sitting position. The lung is tested at the total lung volume and through three intercostal spaces on each lung. In a prospective clinical study, we measure the lung surface wave speeds at 100 Hz, 150 Hz, and 200 Hz on 91 patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) and 30 healthy control subjects. Significant differences of wave speed between patients and controls were found in all 6 lung regions and for 3 frequencies. We also found positive correlation between LUSWE and clinical assessments including CT and pulmonary function tests. LUSWE is used to track the changes of surface wave speed for patients. LUSWE is a safe and noninvasive technique for generating and measuring surface wave propagation on the lung. LUSWE may complement the clinical standard high-resolution computed tomography for assessing ILD.Lung ultrasound surface wave elastography (LUSWE) was developed for noninvasively measuring superficial lung tissue stiffness. In LUSWE, a 0.1 second harmonic vibration is generated on the chest wall of a subject using a handheld vibrator. An ultrasound probe is aligned with the vibration excitation in the same intercostal space to measure the generated surface wave propagation on the lung. A human subject is examined in a sitting position. The lung is tested at the total lung volume and through three intercostal spaces on each lung. In a prospective clinical study, we measure the lung surface wave speeds at 100 Hz, 150 Hz, and 200 Hz on 91 patients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) and 30 healthy control subjects. Significant differences of wave speed between patients and controls were found in all 6 lung regions and for 3 frequencies. We also found positive correlation between LUSWE and clinical assessments including CT and pulmonary function tests. LUSWE is used to track the changes of surface wave ...