Improvement of 3-D Ultrasound Spine Imaging Technique Using Fast Reconstruction Algorithm

• Published in: IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control Vol. 68; no. 10; pp. 3104 - 3113
• Main Authors: Chen, Hong-Bo, Zheng, Rui, Qian, Li-Yue, Liu, Feng-Yu, Song, Sheng, Zeng, Hong-Ye
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: New York IEEE 01.10.2021; The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE)
• Subjects: 3-D ultrasound (US) image reconstruction; Accuracy; Algorithms; Correlation coefficients; Cost analysis; Evaluation; fast dot-projection (FDP); Image acquisition; Image contrast; Image quality; Image reconstruction; Imaging; Imaging techniques; Interpolation; multiple plane interpolation (MPI); Probes; Reconstruction algorithms; Reliability analysis; scoliosis; Signal to noise ratio; Statistical analysis; Three-dimensional displays; Ultrasonic imaging; Ultrasonic testing; ultrasound spine imaging
• ISSN: 0885-3010; 1525-8955; 1525-8955
• DOI: 10.1109/TUFFC.2021.3087712

Three-dimensional (3-D) freehand ultrasound (US) imaging has been applied to the investigation of spine deformity. However, it is a challenge for the current 3-D imaging reconstruction algorithms to achieve a balance between image quality and computation time. The objectives of this article are to implement a new fast reconstruction algorithm that can fulfill the request of immediate demonstration and processing for high-quality 3-D spine imaging, and to evaluate the reliability and accuracy of scoliotic curvature measurement when using the algorithm. The fast dot-projection (FDP) algorithm was applied for voxel-based nearest neighbor (VNN), multiple plane interpolation (MPI), and pixel nearest neighbor (PNN) protocols to reduce the reconstruction time. The 3-D image volume was reconstructed from the datasets acquired from scoliotic subjects. The computational cost, image characteristics, and statistical analyses of curve measurements were compared and evaluated among different reconstruction protocols. The results illustrated that the 3-D spine images using the FDP-MPI4 algorithm showed higher brightness (20%), contrast (14%), and signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) (26%) than FDP-VNN. The measurement performed by trainee rater exhibited significant improvement in measurement reliability and accuracy using FDP-MPI4 in comparison with FDP-VNN (<inline-formula> <tex-math notation="LaTeX">{p} < 0.01 </tex-math></inline-formula>), and the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) of interrater measurement increased from 0.88 to 0.96. The FDP-PNN method could acquire and reconstruct spine images simultaneously and present the results in 1-2 min, which showed the potential to provide the approximate real-time visualization for fast screening.