Ultrasound medical imaging with optimized speed of sound based on fat fraction
AssigneeSiemens Medical Solutions USA, Inc.
InventorYassin Labyed
Life of this patent
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Abstract
For ultrasound imaging with an ultrasound scanner, fat fraction of the tissue is measured. The fat fraction may be measured without access to channel data, such as from beamformed data. The speed of sound varies with the fat fraction of tissue, so the fat fraction is used to set the speed of sound in beamforming. Imaging the tissue using the fat fraction-based optimization for speed of sound may provide better images than imaging with an assumed speed.
Claims20
A method for ultrasound imaging with an ultrasound scanner, the method comprising:
- estimating, by a processor, fat fraction for a liver of a patient, the fat fraction estimated from an ultrasound-based multi-parametric approach that combines measurements of quantitative parameters extracted from received signals of different wave phenomena, the fat fraction estimated as a quantitative value;
- determining, by the processor, a speed of sound in tissue of the liver from the quantitative value of the fat fraction;
- configuring a beamformer of the ultrasound scanner based on the determined speed of sound;
- and
- imaging the liver of the patient with the beamformer as configured based on the determined speed of sound.
A system for ultrasound medical imaging, the system comprising:
- a transducer;
- a beamformer configured to scan tissue in a patient, with the transducer, based on a first speed of sound in the tissue and a second speed of sound in the tissue;
- an image processor configured to estimate a percentage of fat fraction of the tissue of the patient from beamformed samples output by the beamformer using the first speed of sound, to set the second speed of sound from the percentage of the fat fraction, and to generate an image of the tissue from beamformed samples output by the beamformer using the second speed of sound as set from the fat fraction;
- and
- a display configured to display the image of the tissue.
A method for optimized speed of sound setting in an ultrasound medical scanner, the method comprising:
- measuring a fat fraction of tissue in a patient as a calculated quantity;
- setting a beamformer focus profile based on the calculated quantity of the fat fraction;
- scanning the tissue of the patient by the ultrasound medical scanner using the beamformer focus profile;
- and
- generating an image of the tissue from results of the scanning.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.