Method and apparatus for tissue doppler imaging

• US 8,758,249 B2
• Filed: 12/27/2006
• Issued: 06/24/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 10/23/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co., Ltd. (Excelsior Union Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Shenzhen Mindray Bio-Medical Electronics Co., Ltd. (Excelsior Union Ltd.)
• Inventors: Zhang, Yu, Li, Xin
• Primary Examiner(s): Roy, Baisakhi
• Application Number:
  US11/646,841
• Publication Number:
  US 20080161691A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,736 Days
• Field of Search: 600/437, 600/453, 600/440, 600/441, 600/442, 600/449, 600/450, 600/454, 600/455
• US Class Current: 600/453
• 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 8/0883 for diagnosis of the heart
• CPC Class Codes: A61B 8/488 involving Doppler signals
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8981 Discriminating between fixed and moving objects or between objects moving at different speeds, e.g. wall clutter filter
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 15/8988 Colour Doppler imaging
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/52042 determining elastic properties of the propagation medium or of the reflective target diagnostic techniques involving the measurement of strain A61B8/485

Abstract

A method for Tissue Doppler Imaging is provided. The method for Tissue, Doppler Imaging comprises steps of: a) transmitting ultrasound signals to a target area including the tissue to be imaged, and receiving the echo signals returned from the target area; b) performing Doppler estimation on Doppler signals extracted from the echo signals, to acquire Doppler parameters of stationary tissue or nonstationary tissue or blood flow within the target area, wherein the Doppler parameters comprise at least velocity and power; c) processing the acquired power of the Doppler parameters to obtain the power related to the nonstationary tissue within the target area, so as to display the tissue motion.

Claims

1. A method for Tissue Doppler Imaging, comprising the steps of:

a) transmitting ultrasound signals to a target area including the tissue to be imaged, and receiving the echo signals returned from the target area;

b) before filtering Doppler signals extracted from the echo signals, performing Doppler estimation directly on the Doppler signals extracted from the echo signals, to acquire Doppler parameters of stationary tissue and nonstationary tissue or blood flow within the target area, wherein the Doppler parameters comprise at least velocity and power; and

c) filtering, based on the acquired velocity of the Doppler parameters of stationary tissue and nonstationary tissue or blood flow, the acquired power of the Doppler parameters of stationary tissue and nonstationary tissue or blood flow to obtain the power related to the nonstationary tissue within the target area, so as to display the tissue motion.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the filtering step comprises:

pre-designing a filter according to a predetermined velocity range of the tissue motion, so as to process the power.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the filtering step further comprises:

attenuating the power in frequency domain based on a frequency response of the filter.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the attenuating step comprises:

acquiring a relationship between attenuation and velocity based on an amplitude-frequency response of the filter; and

acquiring the attenuation for the power from the corresponding velocity of the Doppler parameters, according to the acquired relationship.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the attenuation is acquired by searching a look-up table.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the attenuation is acquired by obtaining a solution to an analytic equation of the amplitude-frequency response.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the attenuating step further comprises:

performing logarithmic compression on the power of the Doppler parameters to obtain a logarithmic value of the power; and

performing logarithmic compression on the attenuation to obtain a logarithmic value of the attenuation.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the attenuating step comprises:

adding the logarithmic value of the attenuation with the logarithmic value of the power.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the tissue motion is cardiac muscle motion.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the filtering step is to remove the Doppler signals for blood flow and/or stationary tissue within the target area.

11. An apparatus for tissue Doppler imaging, comprising:

a transceiver unit for transmitting ultrasound signals to a target area including the tissue to be imaged, and receiving echo signals returned from the target area;

a Doppler processing unit for performing, before filtering Doppler signals extracted from the echo signals, Doppler estimation directly on the Doppler signals extracted from the echo signals, to acquire Doppler parameters of stationary tissue and nonstationary tissue or blood flow within the target area, wherein the Doppler parameters comprise at least velocity and power; and

a filter for processing, based on the acquired velocity of the Doppler parameters of stationary tissue and nonstationary tissue or blood flow, the power of the Doppler parameters of stationary tissue and nonstationary tissue or blood flow to acquire the power related to the nonstationary tissue, so as to display the tissue motion.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the filter is designed according to a predetermined velocity range of the tissue motion.

13. The apparatus of claim 12, wherein the filter comprises:

an attenuation generator for generating attenuation for the power in frequency domain, based on frequency response of the filter; and

an attenuator for attenuating the power based on the generated attenuation.

14. The apparatus of claim 13, wherein the attenuation generator is configured to acquire a relationship between attenuation and velocity based on an amplitude-frequency response of the filter;

and to generate the attenuation for the power from the corresponding velocity of the Doppler parameters, according to the acquired relationship.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the attenuation generator is configured to generate the attenuation by searching a look-up table.

16. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the attenuation generator is configured to generate the attenuation by obtaining a solution to an analytic equation of the amplitude-frequency response.

17. The apparatus of claim 14, wherein the Doppler processing unit further performs logarithmic compression on the power to obtain a logarithmic value of the power;

and

the attenuation generator further performs logarithmic compression on the attenuation to obtain a logarithmic value of the attenuation.

18. The apparatus of claim 17, wherein the attenuator is an adder for adding the logarithmic value of the power with the logarithmic value of the attenuation.

19. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the tissue motion is cardiac muscle motion.

20. The apparatus of claim 19, wherein the filter is configured to remove the Doppler signals for blood flow and/or stationary tissue within the target area.