Ultrasound Principles Flashcards
WAVE Soft Tissue Level 1 (67 cards)
Rad vs US
RAD Advantages
* gas, bones
* larger region at same time
RAD Disadvantages
* ionizing radiation
* fluid = soft tissue
US Advantages
* no ionizating radiation
* differentiation fluid vs soft tissue structures
* organ internal morphology
* real-time evaluation
* guided interventions: FNA, bx,
drainage, etc
US Disadvantages
* impaired by the presence
of gas and bone
* one region at a time
* equipment dependent
* operator dependent * cost * artifact
Limitations of Ultrasound
-Inaccurate large organ measurement
- Limitations in visualizing bone and gas-filled structure
- Poor determination of neoplastic origin in some case
- small field of view
- inferiors for surgical planning compared to CT/MRI
FNA and biopsy consideration
coagulopathies, anemia, panting(movement), patient demeanor, sedation vs anesthesia, location of target, risks
Sound Waves
Mechanical waves of pressure that travel longitudinally through a medium. Molecules along the line of sound are compressed and expanded(Rarefaction).
Sound Wave Cycle
1 repetitive periodic oscillation
Sound Wave Frequency
Number of times wave is repeated(cycles) per second. 1 Herts= 1 cycle per second.
Wavelength
Distance a wave travels in 1 cycle
Sound Wave Velocity
velocity (M/sec) = Frequency(cycle/sec) X Wavelength(M)
Soft Tissue Velocity
1540 M/sec
Ultrasound Frequency
> 20,000 Hz, diagnostic ultrasound uses 2 to 15 MHz.
1 HZ, 1 kHz, 1 MHz
one cycle, 1000 cycles, 1 million cycles
Crystals
Transmit and receive
Piezoelectric Effect
Crystals with in the transducer hear are electrically stimulated and produce sound waves.
Pulse-Echo Principle
Sound produced by transducer in pulses instead of continuously, transmitting sound into the body less than 1% of the time when the machine is on. Soundwaves propagate through tisssues and are reflected back to the transducer.
Speed of Sound
It depends on density and elasticity of the medium(tissue) it is traveling through. Not effected by frequency of transducer.
Velocity of sound in Body mediums
Air 331 M/sec
Fat 1450 M/sec
Water/Fluid 1540 M/sec
Soft Tissue(avg) 1540 M/sec
Liver 1549 M/sec
Kidney 1570 M/sec
Bone 4080 M/sec
Transducer
Receives reflected waves that vibrate the crystals, turning the signal back into an electronic signal that the computer detects and amplifies(compensating for attenuation) and generates an image of pixels representing the depth and intensity of the returning echo.
Attenuation
The loss of energy that occurs as ultrasound waves travel through a medium.
Depth
Time back to the transducer divided by the speed of sound in tissues(1540 M/sec) equals the depth on image
Strength of Returning Echo
Dependent on degree of attenuation, acoustic impedance, angle of incidence
High frequency transducer attenuation
High frequency transducers have greater attenuation. More cycles/sec = greater tissue interaction. More reflection, absorption, and scattering. Less depth penetration
Scatter
Change in direction, caused when encounters rough surfaces. Speckle echotexture.
Absorption
Change to heat
Refraction
Change in direction, different speed