Surgery – Truss – Pad
Patent
1995-09-20
1997-02-18
Jaworski, Francis
Surgery
Truss
Pad
12866102, 128916, A61B 800
Patent
active
056033265
DESCRIPTION:
BRIEF SUMMARY
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to a method and to an apparatus for this method of displaying an image wherein the signals forming the image are obtained by irradiating an examination subject with a radiation field, such as ultrasound, and detecting the reflected (echo) signals.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A precautionary examination of the female mammary gland for early detection of breast cancer with imaging methods is extremely desirable since this illness, which represents the most common type of cancer in women in industrialized countries, has a significant tendency to spread and an early detection of the sickness usually means a cure.
By contrast to x-ray mammographic examinations, ultrasound examinations are completely non-hazardous and even extremely dense gland tissue (mastopathy) does not represent a problem since the tumors in dense gland tissue can be visibly identified in a sonographic display. X-ray mammography provides no diagnostic utility given patients with a mastopathy or with endoprotheses in the breast region since the tumors can then not be displayed or can only be poorly displayed.
By contrast thereto, however, many previous sonographic methods were incapable of exceeding x-ray mammography in the early detection of malignant tumors in the case of breast examination with respect to sensitivity and specificity. It is precisely this capability, however, that would be desirable since an ultrasound method would represent the ideal examination method because of the completely risk-free nature thereof.
An ultrasound examination is normally undertaken with an acoustic head (applicator) that the physician places onto the organ to be examined in order to thus acquire a tomogram which, as a so-called B-image, corresponds to a slice presentation. Methods are also known that superimpose a number of images registered from different directions on one another in the fashion of a computer tomograph.
A method and an apparatus for producing an image from ultrasound echoes is known from the article by K. Soetanto, "An in-vivo technique for estimation of size and relative sound velocity of breast tumor using distorted image in ultra-sonic tomogram", which appeared in Japanese Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 24, No. 24-1, 1985, Tokyo (JP), pp.84-86. This describes a method for estimating the size and relative speed of sound in a breast tumor wherein a distorted ultrasound image is evaluated. The distortions arise because tumorous tissue has a different speed of sound than healthy tissue. The article describes investigations of a cylindrical member situated in a water tank, this member having a speed of sound therein different from the surrounding water and a reflector plate arranged therebehind. A linear distortion of the ultrasound image of the reflector plate arises because of, the different speeds of sound and the reflector plate in the ultrasound image has lateral tails because of, the refraction of the ultrasound waves is visible in the ultrasound image. The spacing of the tails from one another indicates the diameter of the cylinder. This perception is then used in ultrasound echo tomography of the female breast. The chest wall behind the tumor is used as the planar reflector. The ultrasound examination itself is implemented with a normal ultrasound apparatus, whereby the examining person can freely move the ultrasound transducer without auxiliaries.
In an ultrasound tomography apparatus disclosed by U.S. Pat. No. 4,509,368, transmitted and reflected signals are superimposed and correlated. Although this arrangement enables a gain in information compared to previously known solutions, systems operating according to this method have not been used in practice in significant numbers. It is thereby an impediment that the apparatus is relatively complicated in structure and that a plurality of acoustic transmitters and acoustic receivers are required, as a result of which the apparatus is expensive to acquire and is also not simple in terms of
REFERENCES:
patent: 4509368 (1985-04-01), Whiting et al.
patent: 4680966 (1987-07-01), Nicolas
Soetano, K. et al. "An In-Vivo Technique for Estimation . . . Using Ultrasonic Tomogram", Jap. Jrnl. of Appl. Phys vol. 24 #1 1985 pp. 84-86.
Nicolas, J. Metal, "Apparatus for Examination of Objects by Ultrasound Echography", EP 0164808 publ. Dec. 1985.
Kossoff, G. et al., "Apparatus for UTS Examination of Deflatable Objects", PCT Publ. No. WO83/02053 publ. 23 Jun. 1983.
Wild, J. J. et al., "Echo Visualization of Lesions of . . . Breast", Cancer Research vol. 14 (1954) pp. 277-283.
Hoyohawa, Y. et al, "Mass Screening of Breast Cancer by UTS Transmission Technique -- Theoret. Consid," vol. 24 No. 24-1 (1985) Jap. Jrnl Appl Phys pp. 82-83.
Jaworski Francis
Siemens Aktiengesellschaft
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