Multi-frequency processing for lumen enhancement with wideband intravascular ultrasound

Abstract

The need to further improve the spatial resolution of intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) may drive the transducer center frequency even higher than the current 40 MHz range. Using a higher frequency results in stronger scattering echoes from the blood and may hamper visualization of the arterial lumen. This paper presents a multi-frequency processing method to enhance the arterial lumen by extracting the different scattering characteristics between blood and arterial tissues. A novel wideband catheter enables transmitting a broadband excitation pulse and processing signals in different frequency ranges, allowing detection of the signal ratio between the high (60 MHz) and low (25 MHz) frequencies. To evaluate this method, an in vitro experiment with porcine blood will be described. The lumen enhancement method will be demonstrated in vivo in an animal study.

Micromachined PIN-PMN-PT crystal composite transducer for high-frequency intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) imaging

“…An alternative method to improve resolution without sacrificing penetration depth is to use transducers with broader bandwidth at relatively lower frequency (40 MHz). Moreover, a broadband transducer is advantageous for multi-frequency signal processing to differentiate blood and vessel [6]. …”

Improved automated lumen contour detection by novel multifrequency processing algorithm with current intravascular ultrasound system

“…Recently, we developed a multifrequency processing method to enhance arterial lumen detection by exploiting the differential scattering characteristics of blood and arterial tissues, which can be integrated into current IVUS hardware . Using this method, we have reported the clear delineation of the lumen both in in vitro experiment setup and in vivo animal study . Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate a new automated tracing system with this novel multifrequency processing algorithm using human clinical IVUS data.…”

Improved Automated Lumen Contour Detection by a Novel Multi-Frequency Processing Algorithm Using a Current Intravascular Ultrasound System

“…Recently, we developed a multifrequency processing method to enhance arterial lumen detection by exploiting the differential scattering characteristics of blood and arterial tissues, which can be integrated into current IVUS hardware [6]. Using this method, we have reported the clear delineation of the lumen both in in vitro experiment setup and in vivo animal study [6]. Thus, the aim of this study was to evaluate a new automated tracing system with this novel multifrequency processing algorithm using human clinical IVUS data.…”