Ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus

An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:

• an ultrasonic probe;
• an ultrasonic probe position detecting device configured to detect a position of said ultrasonic probe;
• a transmitting/receiving device configured to drive said ultrasonic probe to repeatedly scan a subject in a planar manner with an ultrasonic beam;
• a low-mechanical index (MI) scan control device configured to repeatedly conduct a scan with the ultrasonic beam at a level as not to break a contrast agent to obtain an initial image and a current image;
• an image producing device configured to produce a plurality of images, each image of the plurality of images based on received data obtained from one scan plane, the plurality of images including the initial image, the current image, and a contrast-enhanced image;
• a correlation value calculating device configured to calculate a correlation value between the initial image and the current image;
• a high-MI scan control device configured to when the correlation value is less than a threshold value to capture the contrast-enhanced image with the ultrasonic beam at a level to break the contrast agent and also to return control to said low-MI scan control device;
• and
• an imaging scan plane distance acquisition device configured to acquire a plurality of distances between scan planes of a plurality of the contrast-enhanced image captures conducted by said high MI scan control device, the plurality of distances between scan planes acquired from said ultrasonic probe position detecting device;
• wherein, said high-MI scan control device is configured to, after one acquisition of a first distance of the plurality of distances between scan planes, to conduct at least one interval image capture with the ultrasonic beam at the level to break the contrast agent spaced by said first distance without returning control to said low-MI scan control device.

An ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus comprising:

• an ultrasonic probe;
• an ultrasonic probe position detecting device configured to detect a position of said ultrasonic probe;
• a transmitting/receiving device configured to drive said ultrasonic probe to repeatedly scan a subject in a planar manner with an ultrasonic beam;
• a low-mechanical index (MI) scan control device configured to repeatedly conduct a scan with the ultrasonic beam at a level that does not break a contrast agent to obtain an initial image and a current image;
• an image producing device configured to produce a plurality of images, each image of the plurality of images based on received data obtained from one scan plane, the plurality of images including the initial image, the current image, and a contrast-enhanced image;
• a correlation value calculating device configured to calculate a correlation value between the initial image and the current image;
• a high-MI scan control device configured to when the correlation value is less than a threshold value to capture the contrast-enhanced image with the ultrasonic beam at a level to break the contrast agent and also to return control to said low-MI scan control device;
• and
• an imaging scan plane distance acquisition device configured to acquire a plurality of distances between scan planes, at each distance of the plurality of distances between scan planes and wherein said high-MI scan control device is configured to conduct at least one contrast-enhanced image capture, the plurality of distances between scan planes acquired from said ultrasonic probe position detecting device;
• wherein after acquiring N distances of the plurality of distances between scan planes, said high-MI scan control device is configured to conduct at least one interval image capture with the ultrasonic beam at the level to break the contrast agent spaced by an average or a maximum of said N distances without returning control to said low-MI scan control device, wherein N is a number of repetitions of the scan by said low-MI scan control device, and wherein N≧2.