Method and apparatus for real-time calculation and display of strain in ultrasound imaging

Abstract

An ultrasound system and method for calculation and display of strain velocity in real time is disclosed. Strain velocity may be determined from tissue velocity. Tissue velocity determined by measuring the pulse-to-pulse Doppler shift at range positions along an ultrasound beam and calculating tissue velocity based on the Doppler shift. The strain velocity is then calculated as a gradient of tissue velocity. Alternatively, linear regression methods may be used to calculate strain velocity from tissue velocity. Alternatively, strain velocity may be determined directly from the difference in Doppler shift between range positions. The result of the strain velocity determination may be displayed in a number of manners such as M-mode, color-coded video images or time-variation curves, and may be displayed in combination, or as a mixture, with a B-mode image. A reliability index may be calculated and used to modify the display of strain velocity information.

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