ULTRA SOUND
IN
MEDICAL
IMAGING
Mohammad Amir
Final Year MBBS
JJMMC
WHAT IS MEDICAL
IMAGING
?
MEDICAL IMAGING: The techniques
and processes used to create image of
the internal as well as external human
body parts for clinical purpose .
Why medical imaging is required?
Medical imaging provides a pictorial status of
particular organ which is to be treated
It makes a surgical targets more clear and precise
It provides a pictorial status of fetus development
right from 4th weak to 36th- 38th week
It make therapeutic targets easy to detect and
treat
TYPES OF MEDICAL IMAGING WIDELY
USED
X-RAY
MAMOGRAPHY
CONTRAST RADIOGRAPHY
ULTRA SOUND
CT SCAN
MRI
SPECT(SINGLE PHOTON EMMISION
TOMOGRAPHY)
PET(POSITRON EMISSION
TOMOGRAPHY)
PIZOELECTRIC IS DEVELOPED BY
THE CURIES IN 1880 USING
NATURAL QUARTZ
SONAR was first time used in war
time 1940
Diagnosis medical application in use
since late 1950‟s
WHAT IS
ULTRA SOUND
?
ULTRA SOUND : MEDICAL
DEFINATION!!!
DIGNOSTIC MEDICAL
ULTRASOUND IS THE USE OF HIGH
FREQUENCY SOUND TO AID IN
DIGNOSIS AND TREATMENT OF
PATIENT.
FREQUENCY RANGES USED IN
MEDICAL ULTRASOUND ARE 2-
15 MHZ
Piezoelectric Effect
Definition: The principle of converting
energy by applying pressure to a crystal.
The reverse of the piezoelectric effect
converts the energy back to its original form
piezoelectric effect Ultrasound
Transducers
•A transducer converts one type
of energy into another
• Based upon:pulse-echo principle
occurring with ultrasound
the
crystals, ultrasound transducers
piezoelectric
convert:
– Electricity into sound = pulse
– Sound into electricity = echo
Transducer contains piezoelectric
elements/crystals which produce the
ultrasound pulses (transmit 1% of the
time)
These elements convert electrical
energy into a mechanical ultrasound
wave
PULSE
• Pulse of sounds is send to soft
tissues
•Sound interaction with soft tissues=
bio effect
•Pulsing is determined by transducer
or probe crystal and ins not operated
or control
ECHO
ECHO IS PRODUCED BY SOFT TISSUES
TISSUE INTRACTION WITH SOUND =
ACOUSTIC PROPAGATION PROPERTIES
ECHOES ARE RECEIVED BY THE
TRANSDUCER CRYSTAL
ECHOES ARE INTRPRETED AND PROCESSED
BY ULTRA SOUND MACHINE
reflective
refraction
Scattered
echoes
Incident
Angle of incidence = angle of reflection
Reflected echoes return to the
scan head where the piezoelectric
elements convert the ultrasound
wave back into an electrical signal
The electrical signal is then
processed by the ultrasound
system
FACTORS AFFECTING
ULTRASOUND
FREQUENCY
WAVELENGTH
BANDWIDTH
ATTENUATION
TIME GAIN COMPENSATION
The thickness of the crystal
determines the frequency of the scan
head
Low High
Frequency Frequency
3 MHz 10 MHz
FREQUENCY AND
RESOLUTION
HIGH FREQUENCY = HIGH RESOLUTION
3.5 MHz(sector) 7.5 MHz(linear)
DYNAMIC RANGE
Decreased DR Increased DR
B-MODE M-MODE
Color Doppler Power Doppler
MACHINE COMPONENT
Transducer probe
CPU(central processing
unit)Transducer pulse
control
Display
Keyboard /cursor
Disk storage device
Printer
Size, design and
frequency
depend upon the
examination
Electrical signal produces ‘dots’ on the
screen
Brightness of the dots is proportional to
the strength of the returning echoes
Location of the dots is determined by
travel time. The velocity in tissue is assumed
constant at 1540m/sec
Distance = Velocity
Time
„B‟ mode
Interactions of Ultrasound with
Tissue
• Acoustic impedance (AI) is dependent on the
density of the material in which sound is
propagated
- the greater the impedance the denser the
material.
• Reflections comes from the interface of
different AI‟s
• greater of the AI = more signal reflected
• works both ways (send and receive directions)
Sound is attenuated by tissue
More tissue to penetrate = more
attenuation of signal
Compensate by adjusting gain based on
depth
near field / far field
AKA: TGC
Gain controls
receiver gain only
does NOT change power
output
think: stereo volume
Increase gain = brighter
Decrease gain = darker
Gain settings are important to
obtaining adequate images.
bad far
bad near field
field
balanced
Strong Reflections = White dots
Diaphragm, tendons, bone
„Hyperechoic‟
Weaker Reflections =
Grey dots
Most solid organs,
thick fluid – „isoechoic‟
No Reflections = Black dots
Fluid within a cyst, urine, blood
„Hypoechoic‟ or echofree
Beam comes out as a slice
Beam Profile
Approx. 1 mm thick
Depth displayed – user controlled
Image produced is “ 2D ”
tomographic slice
assumes no thickness
You control the aim
1mm
The ultimate goal of any ultrasound
system is to make like tissues look the
same and unlike tissues look different
Resolving capability of the system
axial/lateral resolution
spatial resolution
contrast resolution
temporal resolution
Processing Power
ability to capture, preserve and display the
information
Ultrasound Applications
Visualisation Tool:
Nerves, soft tissue masses
Vessels - assessment of position, size,
patency
Ultrasound Guided Procedures in real
time – dynamic imaging; central venous
access, nerve blocks
Imaging
Know your anatomy – Skin, muscle,
tendons, nerves and vessels
Recognise normal appearances –
compare sides!
Skin, subcutaneous
tissue Epidermis
Loose connective tissue and subcutaneous
fat is hypoechoic
Muscle interface
Muscle fibres interface
Bone
Summary
• Resolution determines image clarity
• Electronic Arrays may be sector or linear
• Frequency & wavelength are inversely proportional
• Attenuation & frequency are inversely related
• Display mode chosen determines how image is
registered
• Diagnostic Medical Ultrasound is safe!
conclusion
•Imaging tool – Must have the knowledge to
understand how the image is formed
•Dynamic technique
•Acquisition and interpretation dependant
upon the skills of the operator.
