Enhancing Lateral Contrast Using Multi-perspective Ultrasound Imaging of Abdominal Aortas

Niels J. Petterson (Corresponding author), Marc R.H.M. van Sambeek, Frans N. van de Vosse, Richard G.P. Lopata

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleAcademicpeer-review

17 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Vascular ultrasound imaging is inherently hampered by low lateral resolution and contrast. Steering of the ultrasound beams can be used to overcome these limitations in superficial artery imaging because the aperture-to-depth ratio is relatively high. However, in arteries located at larger depths, the steered beams do not overlap for larger steering angles. In this study, the ultrasound probe is physically translated over the abdomen to create large angles between acquisitions, while maintaining overlap on the abdominal aorta. In one phantom setup and 11 volunteers, 2-D cross-sectional multi-perspective ultrasound images of the abdominal aorta were acquired using seven angles between –45° and +45°. Automatic registration of the recorded images was performed by automatic feature detection of the aorta and spine. This automatic detection was successful in 62 out of 77 image sets. Compounded multi-perspective images showed an increase of contrast-to-noise ratios from 0.6 ± 0.1 to 1.2 ± 0.2 over the entire heart cycle in volunteers.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)535-545
Number of pages11
JournalUltrasound in Medicine and Biology
Volume47
Issue number3
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - Mar 2021

Funding

This study was funded by an unrestricted educational grant of the Lijf & Leven foundation and IMPULS-II. The authors would like to acknowledge Ir. J. de Ruijter for his contributions to the vessel candidate search method implementation and J.A. Bulsink for the construction of the mechanical arch used for the ultrasound acquisitions.

Keywords

  • Aorta
  • Cardiovascular
  • Multi-perspective
  • Ultrasound

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