Quantitative Ultrasonic Imaging Research Articles

Quantitative ultrasonic imaging of weave structure in textile composites

Textile composites owe their desirable mechanical properties to the intricate fabric architecture. However, manufacturing deviations can influence these attributes, significantly affecting their mechanical performance. Thus, ensuring the quality and structural integrity of fabric architectures has become pivotal, leading to the advancement of ultrasonic non-destructive testing techniques. However, existing techniques, primarily tailored for unidirectional laminates, often struggle with weave pattern extraction, given the complex features of fabric laminates. To address this gap, a pulse-echo ultrasound coupled to a 2D analytic-signal analysis is proposed. The 2D analytic-signal methodology autonomously discerns the complex ultrasound features from fabric laminates, streamlining weave pattern analysis. The study showcases ply-by-ply reconstruction of local weave patterns of fabric laminates with nominal layups of [#(0/90)]8 and [#(+45/−45)#(0/90)]5s, respectively. The efficacy of the methodology is ascertained through quantitative metrics, highlighting its innovative potential for through-depth extraction of local weave patterns in a swift and automated manner.

Transcranial Ultrasound Imaging With Decomposition Descent Learning-Based Full Waveform Inversion.

Noninvasive brain diagnosis is extremely important because of its efficiency, low cost, and painless nature in the prediction of stroke, cerebral hemorrhage, and other brain research. At present, achieving full 3-D quantitative ultrasonic imaging of the human brain is a cutting-edge challenge due to the complex structures of the human brain and the strong scattering caused by the skulls. In this article, we achieved quantitative ultrasonic imaging of inside-brain anomalies with our proposed method, the decomposition descent learning-based full waveform inversion (DDL-FWI). The proposed method adopts a linear residual decomposing technique to greatly alleviate the computation burden in fast inversion tomography (FIT) with enhanced convergence guaranteed by residual functions. Testing results in both simulation and laboratory experiments demonstrated that our method can achieve high-quality quantitative imaging of brain soft tissues and skulls even starting from homogeneous water background in 2-D, and this method is capable of reconstructing both complex brain tissues and clots in 2-D and 3-D cases using either clean or noisy signals, with a robust 3-D clot resolution as small as 18 mm and 2-D reconstruction speed in 11.20 s. Combined with advanced ultrasonic hardware, DDL-FWI can be easily trained and used for brain imaging efficiently that frees patients from harmful influences from traditional imaging techniques, e.g., ionization radiations from X-ray computed tomography (CT).

Deep-Learning for High Quality and High Quantitative Ultrasonic Echo Imaging.

This paper performs in simulations deep learning (DL) for high quality and high quantitative ultrasonic (US) echo imaging: (i) reduction of multiple echoes (multiple reverberations) and (ii) grading lobe echoes, (iii) separation of multiply crossed waves in US echo images, (iv) US attenuation correction imaging and (v) superresolutioned reflection and scattering imaging. In addition, (vi) segmentations of benign and malignant (cancerous) tumors in breast tissues are also performed. Clinical Relevance- This study about DL suggests the possibility of DL US segmentation for the automatic differential diagnosis about the human in vivo breast tumors in conjunction with the surrounding DL models.

WE-FG-202-02: Exploration of High-Resolution Quantitative Ultrasonic Micro-Vascular Imaging for Early Assessment of Radiotherapy Tumor Response

Purpose: Currently, we cannot predict an individual patient's response to a given radiotherapy which normally is not detected for weeks to months post-treatment. As a result, precious time is wasted for patients with unresponsive tumors who could have switched to an alternative treatment much earlier. Presently, no early treatment response detection method exists that is effective, low-cost, non-invasive, and safe. We hypothesize that changes in tumor microvasculature predict tumor response to radiotherapy earlier than tumor volume changes. Recent radiobiology research suggests tumors undergo vascular remodeling in response to radiation well before manifesting changes in tumor volume. We propose monitoring tumor microvasculature post-radiation using Acoustic Angiography (AA), a novel ultrasound imaging modality developed and patented in-house. In this study, we investigate whether changes in tumor microvasculature, measured using AA, can be an early indicator of high-dose radiotherapy success, compared to changes in tumor volume. Methods: Fibrosarcoma xenograft tumor tissue was subcutaneously implanted into rodent flanks (N=10). Animal tumors (N=8) were irradiated with a single treatment of 15Gy using a clinical LINAC at 100SSD and 2×2cm field size. Two untreated rats were left as tumor controls. AA imaging was performed immediately posttreatment and every third day thereafter for 30 days, or until tumors disappeared. Tumor volumes and vascular densities were measured from anatomical b-mode ultrasound and AA images, respectively. Results: Statistical differences in vascular density between treatment responders and non-responders were observed on Day 10 (p=0.005), whereas statistical differences in tumor volume were not observed until Day 19 (p=0.02). Conclusions: Tumor vascularity differences may be observed substantially earlier than differences in tumor size. In addition, significant early increases in vascular density were observed in non-responding tumors. This data is consistent with a similar study we completed using the same tumor and animal models (N=10) at 20Gy. The project described was supported by the National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences (NCATS), National Institutes of Health, through Grant Award Number UL1TR001111. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.

WE‐EF‐210‐00: Advances in Ultrasound Imaging Technology

Recent advances in ultrasound‐related technologies have had a significant impact on enhancing image quality as well as offering new approaches for quantitative ultrasonic imaging and therapeutic applications. The presentations associated with this session will provide an overview of advances in ultrasound image formation, the development of using nanoparticles for therapeutic ultrasound applications, as well as approaches for assessing the intrinsic viscoelastic properties of tissue and methods for monitoring tissue response to therapy.Learning Objectives: Develop a general understanding of new technologies associated with enhanced ultrasound image formation and volume imaging. Develop an understanding of new ultrasound‐based technologies for quantitative assessment of intrinsic tissue properties. Develop an understanding of novel approaches for ultrasound‐mediated non‐invasive therapeutic applications. Dr. Rao is an employee of Siemens Ultrasound

WE‐EF‐210‐01: Advances in Coherent Image Formation and Volume Imaging in Ultrasound

Recent advances in ultrasound‐related technologies have had a significant impact on enhancing image quality as well as offering new approaches for quantitative ultrasonic imaging and therapeutic applications. The presentations associated with this session will provide an overview of advances in ultrasound image formation, the development of using nanoparticles for therapeutic ultrasound applications, as well as approaches for assessing the intrinsic viscoelastic properties of tissue and methods for monitoring tissue response to therapy.Learning Objectives: Develop a general understanding of new technologies associated with enhanced ultrasound image formation and volume imaging. Develop an understanding of new ultrasound‐based technologies for quantitative assessment of intrinsic tissue properties. Develop an understanding of novel approaches for ultrasound‐mediated non‐invasive therapeutic applications. Dr. Rao is an employee of Siemens Ultrasound

WE‐EF‐210‐03: Ultrasound‐Mediated Stimulation of Nanoparticles for Therapeutic Applications

Recent advances in ultrasound‐related technologies have had a significant impact on enhancing image quality as well as offering new approaches for quantitative ultrasonic imaging and therapeutic applications. The presentations associated with this session will provide an overview of advances in ultrasound image formation, the development of using nanoparticles for therapeutic ultrasound applications, as well as approaches for assessing the intrinsic viscoelastic properties of tissue and methods for monitoring tissue response to therapy.Learning Objectives: Develop a general understanding of new technologies associated with enhanced ultrasound image formation and volume imaging. Develop an understanding of new ultrasound‐based technologies for quantitative assessment of intrinsic tissue properties. Develop an understanding of novel approaches for ultrasound‐mediated non‐invasive therapeutic applications. Dr. Rao is an employee of Siemens Ultrasound

WE‐EF‐210‐02: Ultrasound Innovations in Therapy Response Monitoring

Recent advances in ultrasound‐related technologies have had a significant impact on enhancing image quality as well as offering new approaches for quantitative ultrasonic imaging and therapeutic applications. The presentations associated with this session will provide an overview of advances in ultrasound image formation, the development of using nanoparticles for therapeutic ultrasound applications, as well as approaches for assessing the intrinsic viscoelastic properties of tissue and methods for monitoring tissue response to therapy.Learning Objectives: Develop a general understanding of new technologies associated with enhanced ultrasound image formation and volume imaging. Develop an understanding of new ultrasound‐based technologies for quantitative assessment of intrinsic tissue properties. Develop an understanding of novel approaches for ultrasound‐mediated non‐invasive therapeutic applications. Dr. Rao is an employee of Siemens Ultrasound

WE‐EF‐210‐04: Viscoelastic Response (VisR) Ultrasound for Noninvasively Assessing the Viscoelastic Properties of Tissue

Recent advances in ultrasound‐related technologies have had a significant impact on enhancing image quality as well as offering new approaches for quantitative ultrasonic imaging and therapeutic applications. The presentations associated with this session will provide an overview of advances in ultrasound image formation, the development of using nanoparticles for therapeutic ultrasound applications, as well as approaches for assessing the intrinsic viscoelastic properties of tissue and methods for monitoring tissue response to therapy.Learning Objectives: Develop a general understanding of new technologies associated with enhanced ultrasound image formation and volume imaging. Develop an understanding of new ultrasound‐based technologies for quantitative assessment of intrinsic tissue properties. Develop an understanding of novel approaches for ultrasound‐mediated non‐invasive therapeutic applications. Dr. Rao is an employee of Siemens Ultrasound

Myocardial tissue characterization: Myofiber-induced ultrasonic anisotropy

One goal of this invited presentation is illustrate the capabilities of quantitative ultrasonic imaging (tissue characterization) to determine local myofiber orientation using techniques applicable to clinical echocardiographic imaging. Investigations carried out in our laboratory in the late 1970s were perhaps the first reported studies of the impact on the ultrasonic attenuation of the angle between the incoming ultrasonic beam and the local myofiber orientation. In subsequent studies, we were able to show that the ultrasonic backscatter exhibits a maximum and the ultrasonic attenuation exhibits a minimum when the sound beam is perpendicular to myofibers, whereas the attenuation is maximum and the backscatter is minimum for parallel insonification. Results from our laboratory demonstrate three broad areas of potential contribution derived from quantitative ultrasonic imaging and tissue characterization: (1) improved diagnosis and patient management, such as monitoring alterations in regional myofiber alignment (for example, potentially in diseases such as hypertrophic cardiomyopathy), (2) improved echocardiographic imaging, such as reduced lateral wall dropout in short axis echocardiographic images, and (3) improved understanding of myocardial physiology, such as contributing to a better understanding of myocardial twist resulting from the layer-dependent helical configuration of cardiac myofibers. [NIH R21 HL106417.]

WE‐A‐204B‐02: Monitoring Tumor and Normal Tissue Response in Radiotherapy: Application of Quantitative Ultrasonic Imaging

Radiation therapy, either alone or in combination with surgery and chemotherapy, is a powerful tool in cancer treatment. An estimated half of all newly diagnosed cancer patients receive radiotherapy for tumor control. With recent advances in technology, great focus has been placed on optimizing radiation treatment techniques to reduce normal‐tissue effects. We have investigated noninvasive quantitative ultrasound to assess tumor as well as normal‐tissue response in cancer radiotherapy. Ultrasound is safe, noninvasive, cost‐effective and widely‐accessible making it well‐suited for clinical implementation. Our ultrasound technique combines conventional B‐mode ultrasound with ultrasonic tissue characterization (UTC), which can measure changes in tissue microstructures, to objectively assess radiation‐induced changes to the targeted cancerous regions and the surrounding normal tissues. In a breast‐cancer radiotherapy study, we demonstrated its capability in measuring radiation‐induced acute and late toxicity in the skin and subcutaneous tissues. In this presentation, we report its applications in breast, prostate, as well as head and neck cancer radiotherapy. Such information is important for evaluating the therapeutic ratio. Physicians will gain a better understanding of individual patient's radiation response and therefore, be able to design personalized treatment regimens. We acknowledge the support of NIH CA 114313, Columbia University Women at Risk, and Susan G Komen for the Cure.

Extending the trade‐off between spatial resolution and variance in quantitative ultrasonic backscattering imaging (QUS) using full angular spatial compounding.

Tissue microstructure properties can be estimated using backscattered power measurements and quantitative ultrasound (QUS) techniques. The objective of this study was to evaluate the use of full angular (i.e., 360°) spatial compounding as a means of extending the trade‐off between QUS variance and spatial resolution. Simulations and experimental results were conducted with a 10 MHz, f/4 transducer. In simulations, a synthetic phantom consisting of two eccentric cylindrical regions with Gaussian inclusions with 50 and 25 μm average scatterer diameter (ASD) values was analyzed. The use of multiple view data reduced the corresponding ASD standard deviations from 13.7 and 19.6 μm to 2.5 and 3.7 μm, respectively. In experimental measurements, a phantom that contained glass spheres with diameters between 45 and 53 μm was evaluated. The ASD standard deviation obtained using single view data was 10.4 μm. When using 32 angles of view and reducing both region‐of‐interest (ROI) dimensions by a factor of 2, the ASD standard deviation was reduced to 4.8 μm. The results presented here demonstrate that both QUS spatial resolution and precision can be improved simultaneously by using full angular spatial compounding. This method finds direct applicability for breast tissue characterization, for which full angular coverage is available.

Distorted Born Diffraction Tomography Applied to Inverting Ultrasonic Field Scattered by Noncircular Infinite Elastic Tube

This study focuses on the application of ultrasonic diffraction tomography to noncircular 2D-cylindrical objects immersed in an infinite fluid. The distorted Born iterative method used to solve the inverse scattering problem belongs to the class of algebraic reconstruction algorithms. This method was developed to increase the order of application of the Born approximation (in the case of weakly-contrasted media) to higher orders. This yields quantitative information about the scatterer, such as the speed of sound and the attenuation. Quantitative ultrasonic imaging techniques of this kind are of great potential value in fields such as medicine, underwater acoustics and nondestructive testing.

Empirical relationships between acoustic parameters in human soft tissues

Previously published summaries of sound speed, density, attenuation coefficient, and nonlinearity parameter, B/A, in human soft tissues are quantitatively analyzed. A highly significant empirical linear relationship is found to hold between sound speed and density for a wide range of soft tissues, including adipose, parenchymal, muscular, and connective tissues as well as body fluids. Even higher correlations occur between nondimensional parameters describing density variations and compressibility variations. Values for the nonlinearity parameter correlate significantly with sound speed and density, while the attenuation coefficient is found not to correlate significantly with any of the other parameters considered. Implications for tissue modeling and quantitative ultrasonic imaging are discussed.

Wideband quantitative ultrasonic imaging by time-domain diffraction tomography

A quantitative ultrasonic imaging method employing time-domain scattering data is presented. This method provides tomographic images of medium properties such as the sound speed contrast; these images are equivalent to multiple-frequency filtered-backpropagation reconstructions using all frequencies within the bandwidth of the incident pulse employed. However, image synthesis is performed directly in the time domain using coherent combination of far-field scattered pressure waveforms, delayed and summed to numerically focus on the unknown medium. The time-domain method is more efficient than multiple-frequency diffraction tomography methods, and can, in some cases, be more efficient than single-frequency diffraction tomography. Example reconstructions, obtained using synthetic data for two- and three-dimensional scattering of wideband pulses, show that the time-domain reconstruction method provides image quality superior to single-frequency reconstructions for objects of size and contrast relevant to medical imaging problems such as ultrasonic mammography. The present method is closely related to existing synthetic-aperture imaging methods such as those employed in clinical ultrasound scanners. Thus, the new method can be extended to incorporate available image-enhancement techniques such as time-gain compensation to correct for medium absorption and aberration correction methods to reduce error associated with weak scattering approximations.

Time-domain ultrasound diffraction tomography

A quantitative ultrasonic imaging method employing time-domain scattering data is presented. This method provides tomographic images of inhomogeneous media using scattering measurements made on a surface surrounding the medium of interest, e.g., on a circle for two-dimensional problems or on a sphere for three-dimensional problems. These scattering data are used to construct a time-domain analog of the far-field scattering operator. Images of compressibility variations are then reconstructed using a coherent combination of the far-field scattered waveforms, delayed and summed in a manner that numerically focuses on the unknown medium. This approach is closely related to synthetic aperture imaging; however, unlike conventional synthetic-aperture methods, the present method provides quantitative reconstructions of compressibility variations, analogous to frequency-compunded filtered backpropagation images weighted by the spectrum of the incident wave. Example reconstructions, obtained using synthetic data for two-dimensional scattering of wideband pulses, show that the time-domain reconstruction method can provide image quality superior to single-frequency reconstructions for objects of size and contrast relevant to medical imaging problems such as ultrasonic mammography. Reconstructions also illustrate the dependence of image quality on the number of incident-wave insonifications and on the range of scattering angles available for measurements.

CLINICAL IMPLEMENTATION OF ULTRASONIC QUANTITATIVE NONDESTRUCTIVE EVALUATION OF THE HEART: A REVIEW

Diagnostic ultrasonic characterization of the heart is designed to assess the state of the myocardium with ultrasonic parameters that relate to structural or functional components of cardiac muscle. The potential cross fertilization of ideas and methods between those borne out of research in quantitative nondestructive evaluation of materials and those borne out of research in diagnostic medical applications in the area of ultrasonics represents an attractive goal. In this paper we describe our approach to tissue characterization of the heart based on quantitative ultrasonic imaging. We discuss methods of ultrasonic tissue characterization applied in laboratory and clinical investigations. Specific examples of the application of clinical quantitative tissue characterization include measurements of the hearts of patients with remote myocardial infarction, dilated cardiomyopathy, acute myocardial ischemia, and hearts of patients with diabetes. The role of anisotropy in quantitative tissue characterization and its effect on measurements obtained from specific standard echocardiographic views are reviewed.

Measurement issues in quantitative ultrasonic imaging

Ultrasonic imaging of flesh and blood is vulnerable to the natural variability of these media: the speed of sound is not known, not constant, and not amenable to calibration using simply shaped manufactured samples. When images of high dimensional accuracy are needed, as for image guided surgery, the average or typical values used in diagnostic ultrasound may not be good enough. In this paper, we identify the main sources of uncertainty, and we suggest and model experimental approaches to in situ calibration.

51903 Ultrasonic nondestructive characterization of composites with 3- dimensional architectures

The development and implementation of advanced composite material systems and their associated technologies are critical for success in the highly competitive world aerospace market. Acceptance of advance production methods and field support of structures made with these new materials require the development of quantitative, cost-effective, inspection methods. The results of quantitative ultrasonic through-transmission imaging of composites with complex three-dimensional architecture using phase-insensitive and phase-sensitive techniques are presented.

Quantitative ultrasonic imaging for tissue characterization

This presentation will illustrate relationships between physical acoustics and ultrasonic imaging for medical diagnosis. Ultrasonic tissue characterization is designed to complement two‐dimensional echocardiography by providing information in addition to that derived from an assessment of tissue dimension and motion. The hypothesis is that indices based on (frequency‐dependent) backscatter and attenuation can provide a noninvasive tool for the early diagnosis of diverse disease processes including ischemia and cardiomyopathy. Differentiation between mature infarct and acutely ischemic myocardium, which might benefit from reperfusion by angioplasty or thrombolysis, appears to be feasible on the basis of the frequency dependence of backscatter, which is lower in zones of infarct than in acutely ischemic or normal myocardium. Two‐dimensional images are formed from scans made with the direction of propagation of ultrasound at varying angles relative to the local fiber orientation of the myocardium. Backscatter and attenuation vary substantially with the angle of insonification relative to myofibers. This research is designed to lay the groundwork for exploiting the anisotropy of myocardial ultrasonic properties to achieve improved understanding of cardiac mechanical properties (elasticity and compliance) in normal and diseased hearts. [Work supported by NIH HL40302, HL17646, HL42950.]