Diagnosing Small Joints by Soft Ultrasound Probes

项目摘要 小关节的疾病，如关节炎和肌腱异常是普遍存在的，这不仅导致 患者痛苦持续，但医疗成本也很高。肌肉骨骼超声成像是一种非常宝贵的 诊断这些疾病的工具。然而，目前的刚性和平面超声探头具有有限的接触 具有小关节的高度弯曲的不规则表面的区域，这导致较差的声学耦合， 有限的超声窗口。此外，刚性探头需要经验丰富的专业人员来扫描关节 第四，具有不同的扫描位置和方向，这是劳动密集和耗时的。在 此外，这在所获取的图像中引起各向异性伪影，并且因此高度依赖于操作者。在这 项目中，提出了一种薄而软的超声探头，以允许与小的 关节进行全面、快速和无伪影的检查。方法是探索一种创新的 “岛桥”结构，其将高性能刚性超声换能器阵列与 弹性体聚合物基质，因此所得系统的机械性能将类似于弹性体聚合物基质的那些。 人类皮肤基于相控阵控制机制的先进成像处理算法， 开发所采集的图像在轴向和横向维度上都具有高分辨率。最终器械 将在尸体手指关节上进行测试，并将收集的结果与常规手指关节进行验证。 超声波探头软超声探头可能意味着一种变革性的技术， 下一代可穿戴诊断设备的小关节。

PROJECT SUMMARY Diseases of small joints such as arthritis and tendon abnormalities are prevalent, which leads to not only lasting patient suffering but also heavy healthcare cost. Musculoskeletal ultrasound imaging is an invaluable tool for diagnosing these diseases. However, current rigid and planar ultrasound probes have limited contact area with the highly curved irregular surfaces of the small joints, which leads to poor acoustic coupling and limited sonographic window. Also, the rigid probes require experienced professionals to scan the joints back and forth, with different scanning positions and orientations, which is labor-intensive and time-consuming. In addition, this causes anisotropic artifacts in the acquired images and is thus highly operator-dependent. In this project, a thin and soft ultrasound probe is proposed to allow conformal and intimate integration with the small joints for comprehensive, rapid, and artifact-free examinations. The approach is to explore an innovative “island-bridge” structure that integrates an array of high performance rigid ultrasound transducers with an elastomeric polymer matrix, so mechanical properties of the resulting system will be similar to those of the human skin. Advanced imaging processing algorithm based on phased-array control mechanism will be developed. The acquired images will be high resolution in both axial and lateral dimensions. The final device will be tested on cadaver finger joints, and the collected results will be verified with these from conventional ultrasound probes. The soft ultrasound probes may suggest a transformative technology that holds promise for the next generation of wearable diagnostic devices for the small joints.