The effect of crystal composition and environment on the color Doppler ultrasound twinkling artifact
The effect of crystal composition and environment on the color Doppler ultrasound twinkling artifact
复制标题
DOI：
10.1088/1361-6560/acb2ad
复制
发表时间：
2023-01
影响因子：
3.5
通讯作者：
Eric Rokni;J. Simon
中科院分区：
文献类型：
--
作者：
Eric Rokni;J. Simon
客观的。病理性矿化形成于全身，使用传统成像方法很难检测到。彩色多普勒超声闪烁突出显示约 60% 的肾结石，并伴有快速颜色变化，理论上是由缝隙微泡产生的，因为肾结石上的闪烁在高压下消失，并在乙醇中刮擦丙烯酸球。闪烁有时也出现在其他病理性矿化上；然而，目前尚不清楚闪烁的病因是否与肾结石相同。方法。在这项研究中，五种胆固醇、磷酸钙和尿酸晶体在体外生长，并使用研究超声系统和水中的 L7-4 换能器以多普勒模式进行成像。为了评估压力对闪烁的影响，在高压室中对相同的晶体进行成像。然后，通过对不同浓度的表面活性剂（1%、2%、3%、4%）和乙醇（10%、30%、50%、70%）、人造尿液、牛血和模拟组织模型中的晶体成像来评估表面张力对闪烁的影响。主要结果。结果显示，所有晶体在水中都会闪烁，其中胆固醇的闪烁明显多于磷酸钙和尿酸。当环境压力增加时，当压力达到 7 MPa（绝对）时，所有测试晶体的闪烁都消失，而当恢复到环境压力（0.1 MPa）时，闪烁又重新出现。同样，当在表面活性剂和乙醇中成像时，所有晶体的闪烁都会随着表面张力的增加而减少（当表面张力<22 mN m−1 时具有统计学意义），并且在血液中（表面张力 = 52.7 mN m−1）也会减少，但不受人造尿液的影响（与水的表面张力相似）。在模拟组织的模型中，胆固醇和磷酸钙晶体的闪烁增加，而尿酸晶体没有观察到变化。意义。总体而言，这些结果支持了晶体上存在气泡并导致闪烁的理论，可以利用该理论来改善闪烁以检测其他病理矿化。
Objective. Pathological mineralizations form throughout the body and can be difficult to detect using conventional imaging methods. Color Doppler ultrasound twinkling highlights ∼60% of kidney stones with a rapid color shift and is theorized to arise from crevice microbubbles as twinkling disappears on kidney stones at elevated pressures and scratched acrylic balls in ethanol. Twinkling also sometimes appears on other pathological mineralizations; however, it is unclear whether the etiology of twinkling is the same as for kidney stones. Approach. In this study, five cholesterol, calcium phosphate, and uric acid crystals were grown in vitro and imaged in Doppler mode with a research ultrasound system and L7-4 transducer in water. To evaluate the influence of pressure on twinkling, the same crystals were imaged in a high-pressure chamber. Then, the effect of surface tension on twinkling was evaluated by imaging crystals in different concentrations of surfactant (1%, 2%, 3%, 4%) and ethanol (10%, 30%, 50%, 70%), artificial urine, bovine blood, and a tissue-mimicking phantom. Main results. Results showed that all crystals twinkled in water, with cholesterol twinkling significantly more than calcium phosphate and uric acid. When the ambient pressure was increased, twinkling disappeared for all tested crystals when pressures reached 7 MPa (absolute) and reappeared when returned to ambient pressure (0.1 MPa). Similarly, twinkling across all crystals decreased with surface tension when imaged in the surfactant and ethanol (statistically significant when surface tension <22 mN m−1) and decreased in blood (surface tension = 52.7 mN m−1) but was unaffected by artificial urine (similar surface tension to water). In the tissue-mimicking phantom, twinkling increased for cholesterol and calcium phosphate crystals with no change observed in uric acid crystals. Significance. Overall, these results support the theory that bubbles are present on crystals and cause twinkling, which could be leveraged to improve twinkling for the detection of other pathological mineralizations.