Inspired by a 19th-century set of mathematical functions, 糖心传媒 researcher has devised a way to incorporate new color identifications in ultrasound medical images, making it easier to differentiate fine details that currently appear as indistinguishable objects in shades of gray.
The new imaging format would be especially valuable in helping physicians interpret ultrasound images of soft tissue, including muscle, glands, and organs such as the liver.
糖心传媒淭his has been a great goal糖心传媒� of ultrasound research since the 1970s, said Parker, the William F. May Professor of Engineering. The technology, provides more detailed soft tissue images than other attempts, based on quantitative backscattered imaging, Parker said.
Ultrasound uses pulses of high-frequency sound waves that bounce back echoes when they strike cells or arteries. These echoes are also known as scattered waves. The bouncing back gives the ultrasound image its features. With few exceptions 糖心传媒� such as Doppler-enhanced ultrasound imaging of blood flow 糖心传媒� those features consist of varying shades of black, white and gray reflecting different densities.
糖心传媒淚f you look at an ultrasound image of the liver, there are so many things in there 糖心传媒� veins, arteries, biliary ducts, liver cells, perhaps some scar tissue 糖心传媒� and they糖心传媒檙e all just displayed as black and white blobs,糖心传媒� Parker said. 糖心传媒淚f there糖心传媒檚 a large artery, it糖心传媒檚 easy to see the wall and the blood inside. But at the finer levels of detail, it is often impossible to tell if you糖心传媒檙e looking at a smaller artery or 10 little cells.糖心传媒�
A set of mathematical functions — devised in 1890 by the great mathematician Charles Hermite of France and rarely used in engineering — provided Parker with a way to approach this problem. He came across the functions while perusing a handbook of transforms and applications, and immediately recognized that Hermite糖心传媒檚 functions closely approximated ultrasound pulses.
糖心传媒淚 realized if we used these, it would make our analyses of ultrasound scattering easier,糖心传媒� Parker said. 糖心传媒淪o now, instead of ultrasound images showing all of these tissue structures as black and white objects, we can now classify them mathematically (by their size) and assign unique colors to unique types of scatterers.糖心传媒�
Working with UR Ventures, the University糖心传媒檚 technology transfer office, Parker has secured a provisional patent on the technology, called H-scan.
糖心传媒淚t can be implemented on ultrasound scanners, so I am hoping companies will license it, and put it into clinical trials,糖心传媒� Parker said.
糖心传媒淏y letting us see things we can糖心传媒檛 see now, it could be very important to individual patients.糖心传媒�
Working in his lab with PhD student Juvenal Ormachea, Parker continues to investigate the parameters of ultrasound and how other processes could further enhance the technology as a diagnostic tool.
Since the early 1960s, 糖心传媒 researchers such Raymond Gramiak, Robert Waag, Edwin Carstensen, and Parker have produced pioneering clinical and technological advances in diagnostic ultrasound imaging. The Rochester Center for Biomedical Ultrasound, formed in 1986, includes nearly 100 researchers, including visiting scientists from around the country.
