System and method for ECG-triggered retrospective color flow ultrasound imaging

• US 7,674,228 B2
• Filed: 02/28/2005
• Issued: 03/09/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/01/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: FUJIFILM SonoSite, Inc. (Fujifilm Holdings Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Sunnybrook and Women's College Health Sciences Centre
• Inventors: Needles, Andrew, Foster, F. Stuart, Williams, Ross, Cherin, Emmanuel
• Primary Examiner(s): Winakur; Eric F
• Assistant Examiner(s): Fernandez; Katherine L
• Application Number:
  US11/068,565
• Publication Number:
  US 20050197572A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,835 Days
• Field of Search: 600/437, 600/441, 600/447, 382/128, 382/162, 382/254
• US Class Current: 600/437
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/06 Measuring blood flow measuring volume flow in general G01F, e.g. G01F1/66, G01F1/72; measuring speed of fluids in general G01P5/00
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/13 Tomography A61B8/10, A61B8/12 take precedence; tomography for radiation diagnosis A61B6/02
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/5284 involving retrospective matching to a physiological signal
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/54 Control of the diagnostic device
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8906 Short-range imaging systems; Acoustic microscope systems using pulse-echo techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8956 using frequencies at or above 20 MHz
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8979 Combined Doppler and pulse-echo imaging systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8988 Colour Doppler imaging
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/899 Combination of imaging systems with ancillary equipment
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52034 Data rate converters
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52085 Details related to the ultrasound signal acquisition, e.g. scan sequences control of medical diagnostic ultrasound devices A61B8/54
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52087 using synchronization techniques control of medical diagnostic ultrasound devices involving acquisition triggered by a physiological signal A61B8/543
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52088 involving retrospective scan line rearrangements medical diagnostic ultrasound devices involving retrospective matching to a physiological signal A61B8/5284

Abstract

A method for producing an ECG-triggered retrospective color-flow ultrasound image comprises generating ultrasound, transmitting the ultrasound into a subject at a first location, wherein a first reference point of an ECG signal taken from the subject triggers the ultrasound transmission, receiving ultrasound reflected from the subject at the first location, transmitting the ultrasound into the subject at a second location, wherein a second reference point of an ECG signal taken from the subject triggers the ultrasound transmission receiving ultrasound reflected from the subject at the second location, processing the received ultrasound to form ultrasound color traces, and reconstructing the ultrasound color traces to form the ultrasound image.

Claims

1. A method of producing an ultrasound image, comprising:

generating ultrasound;

transmitting N pulses of the ultrasound into a subject at a first location, wherein a first reference point of an ECG signal taken from the subject triggers the ultrasound transmission;

receiving N pulses of ultrasound reflected from the subject at the first location;

transmitting N pulses of the ultrasound into the subject at a second location, wherein a second reference point of an ECG signal taken from the subject triggers the ultrasound transmission;

receiving N pulses of ultrasound reflected from the subject at the second location;

processing the N pulses of received ultrasound from the first location to form N′

first ultrasound color traces and processing the N pulses of received ultrasound from the second location to form N′

second ultrasound color traces, wherein N′

is less than or equal to N−

1;

incrementally repeating from n=1 to N′

reconstructing the N′

first ultrasound color traces and N′

second ultrasound color traces into N′

image frames, wherein each image frame is comprised of a first line corresponding to the nth first ultrasound color trace and a second line corresponding to the nth second ultrasound trace.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating ultrasound in a frequency of about 20 MHz to 60 MHz.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising using the ultrasound on a small animal to image blood flow.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the small animal is a mouse.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising using the ultrasound on a small animal to produce a blood velocity estimate.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the small animal is a mouse.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising overlaying the ultrasound image on a retrospective B-scan ultrasound image.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the ultrasound is generated by a single element mechanically scanned transducer.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the ultrasound is generated by an electronically steerable array transducer.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising displaying a plurality of image frames in series to form a cineloop.

11. A system for developing an ultrasound image, comprising:

an ultrasound probe having a transducer capable of transmitting and receiving ultrasound energy;

a transmit subsystem configured to transmit a plurality of ultrasound pulses at a plurality of locations on a subject'"'"'s anatomy, the plurality of ultrasound pulses transmitted at each of the plurality of locations when triggered by a reference point of an ECG signal;

a memory on which resides software, wherein received ultrasound energy is input into the software from each of the plurality of locations on a subject'"'"'s anatomy and corresponding color flow traces are output by the software; and

a processor configured to generate a plurality of ECG-triggered retrospective color flow ultrasound image frames, wherein each frame is comprised of lines and each line corresponds to one of the color flow traces from one of the plurality of locations on the subject'"'"'s anatomy, wherein the memory is coupled to the processor.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the ultrasound occurs at a frequency range of about 20 MHz to 60 MHz.

13. The system of claim 12, wherein the ultrasound is performed on a small animal to image blood flow.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the small animal is a mouse.

15. The system of claim 11, further comprising:

a second software residing on the memory, wherein the color flow traces are processed by the second software forming a representation of blood flow over a region or portion of the subject'"'"'s anatomy.