Ultrasonic imaging method and ultrasonic imaging system for heart

Abstract

The invention provides an ultrasonic imaging method and an ultrasonic imaging system for a heart, and belongs to the field of ultrasonic imaging. Aiming at the problem that the heart has physiological movement to bring challenge to elastography, the method comprises the following steps: firstly, imaging the heart to obtain an ultrasonic image, then identifying the myocardium from the ultrasonic image and tracking the position of the myocardium (such as a to-be-observed myocardium segment) to obtain the real-time position of the myocardium, and then carrying out elastography on the basis of the real-time position of the myocardium; further, in consideration of the fact that the heart has chamber structures such as an atrium and a ventricle which can affect propagation of shear waves, acoustic radiation force is applied to the to-be-observed cardiac muscle (such as the geometric center or the gravity center) based on the real-time position of the cardiac muscle to generate the shear waves, and therefore the effectiveness of generation of the shear waves and the sufficient signal-to-noise ratio are guaranteed.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of ultrasonic imaging, and in particular to a cardiac ultrasonic imaging method and an ultrasonic imaging system. Background Art

[0002] The assessment of myocardial tissue fibrosis has great clinical value. The current clinical gold standard is myocardial biopsy, but myocardial biopsy is highly traumatic, technically difficult, and has the risk of intraoperative complications, which limits its clinical use. Therefore, the assessment of myocardial tissue fibrosis through imaging has become an option. Existing imaging methods for assessing myocardial tissue fibrosis mainly rely on cardiac magnetic resonance imaging. However, cardiac magnetic resonance imaging has its inherent shortcomings, such as slow imaging, high cost, and is not suitable for all patient groups (for example, patients with kidney disease cannot undergo cardiac contrast magnetic resonance examinations). Therefore, there is a lack of an efficient and safe imaging method in clinical practice to screen and judge the degree of myocardial fibrosis in patients during routine clinical examinations.

[0003] As an emerging elastic imaging technology in ultrasound imaging, shear wave elastography has proven its effectiveness in the liver and superficial areas, especially in the diagnosis of liver fibrosis grading. Compared with organs such as the liver, the heart itself has physiological movements, that is, the heart is constantly contracting and relaxing, which makes it difficult to perform elastic imaging of the heart. Summary of the invention

[0004] In order to solve the above problems, a cardiac ultrasonic imaging method and an ultrasonic imaging system are described in detail below.

[0005] According to a first aspect, an embodiment provides a method for ultrasonic imaging of a heart, comprising: Performing a real-time ultrasonic scan on a target tissue including a heart by using an ultrasonic probe to obtain an ultrasonic image of the heart, and displaying the ultrasonic image in real time in the first area; Identify the section type of the displayed ultrasound image based on a preset section type identification model to obtain a section type identification result, and display the section type identification result in the first area; Determine whether the currently displayed ultrasound image meets the requirements according to the section type recognition result; if so, identify each myocardium contained in the currently displayed ultrasound image based on a preset myocardium recognition model and mark it in the ultrasound image; As the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated, position tracking of the identified myocardium is performed; Identify the target myocardium; In the first elastic imaging mode: at multiple moments when conditions are met, the ultrasonic probe is controlled to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moments to generate shear waves multiple times; the shear waves generated each time are ultrasonically observed by the ultrasonic probe to perform shear wave imaging on the target myocardium, and a color elastic image of the target myocardium is generated; In the second elastic imaging mode: at a plurality of moments satisfying the conditions, ultrasonic observation is performed on the shear waves generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomenon of the heart at the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moments by means of an ultrasonic probe, so as to perform shear wave imaging on the target myocardium and generate a color elastic image of the target myocardium; The color elastic image of the target myocardium is superimposed and displayed on the ultrasound image, and when the generated color elastic image is updated, the displayed color elastic image is also updated accordingly.

[0006] In one embodiment, the cardiac ultrasound imaging method further comprises a third elastic imaging mode, in which: At multiple moments when the conditions are met, the ultrasound probe is controlled to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moments to generate shear waves multiple times; the shear waves generated each time are ultrasonically observed by the ultrasound probe to perform shear wave imaging of the target myocardium, thereby generating a first color elastic image of the target myocardium; At multiple moments when the conditions are met, ultrasonic observation is performed on the shear waves generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomenon of the heart at the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moments by using an ultrasonic probe to perform shear wave imaging on the target myocardium and generate a second color elastic image of the target myocardium; A color elasticity image of the target myocardium is generated based on the first color elasticity image and the second color elasticity image of the target myocardium.

[0007] In one embodiment, the cardiac ultrasound imaging method further comprises: After determining the target myocardium, selecting an elastic imaging mode that matches the type of the target myocardium from a plurality of elastic imaging modes as the current elastic imaging mode according to the type of the target myocardium; and / or, An elastic imaging mode that matches the slice type of the current ultrasound image is selected from a plurality of elastic imaging modes according to the slice type recognition result as the current elastic imaging mode.

[0008] In one embodiment, judging whether the currently displayed ultrasound image meets the requirements according to the section type recognition result includes: judging whether the currently displayed ultrasound image is of the first section type according to the section type recognition result, and if so, meeting the requirements; After performing elastic imaging based on the current elastic imaging mode when the ultrasound image is of the first section type, the second section type to be scanned next is determined based on the target myocardium, and the user is prompted to move or rotate the ultrasound probe; as the ultrasound probe moves, when the displayed ultrasound image is identified as the second section type based on the section type recognition model, the user is prompted to stop the movement of the ultrasound probe; and elastic imaging is performed based on the current elastic imaging mode when the ultrasound image is of the second section type.

[0009] In one embodiment, the step of determining the target myocardium comprises: Displaying a section schematic diagram corresponding to the section type of the ultrasound image in the first region according to the section type recognition result, and marking the myocardium corresponding to the section type on the section schematic diagram; In response to an instruction to select a myocardium marked on the schematic cross-sectional view, the selected myocardium is determined as a target myocardium.

[0010] In one embodiment, in the first elastic imaging mode: the triggering position of the shear wave is also marked on the cross-sectional schematic diagram; in the second elastic imaging mode: the mechanism and / or position of the shear wave generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomenon of the heart is also marked on the cross-sectional schematic diagram.

[0011] In one embodiment, the multiple moments satisfying the conditions include: a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac diastole and a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac systole; or, a mitral valve closure moment and aorta closure moment.

[0012] According to a second aspect, an embodiment provides a method for ultrasonic imaging of a heart, comprising: Performing a real-time ultrasonic scan on a target tissue including a heart by using an ultrasonic probe to obtain an ultrasonic image of the heart, and displaying the ultrasonic image in real time in the first area; Identify the section type of the displayed ultrasound image based on a preset section type identification model to obtain a section type identification result, and display the section type identification result in the first area; Determining whether the currently displayed ultrasound image is of the first section type according to the section type recognition result, and if so, identifying the myocardium corresponding to the section type of the ultrasound image contained in the currently displayed ultrasound image based on a preset myocardial recognition model, and marking and displaying the shape and position of the identified myocardium in the currently displayed ultrasound image by superimposing a contour shape mark; As the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated, the position of the identified myocardium is tracked, and the contour shape mark superimposed on the ultrasound image is updated based on the position tracking result; Displaying a first section schematic diagram corresponding to a first section type in the first region, and marking the myocardium corresponding to the first section type on the first section schematic diagram; In response to a selection instruction for the myocardium marked on the first section schematic diagram, determining a target myocardium; In the case where the ultrasound image is of the first section type: obtaining the real-time cardiac phase of the heart, controlling the ultrasound probe to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding time to generate shear waves multiple times, and the corresponding time is the time corresponding to multiple cardiac phases that meet the conditions in each cardiac cycle; Determine a second section type to be scanned next based on the target myocardium, and prompt the user to move or rotate the ultrasound probe; as the ultrasound probe moves, when the displayed ultrasound image is identified as the second section type based on the section type recognition model, prompt the user to stop moving the ultrasound probe; In the case where the ultrasound image is of the second section type: identifying the target myocardium from the ultrasound image, and tracking the position of the identified target myocardium as the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated; acquiring the real-time cardiac phase of the heart, and controlling the ultrasound probe to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moment to generate shear waves multiple times, wherein the corresponding moment is the moment corresponding to multiple cardiac phases that meet the conditions in each cardiac cycle; Performing ultrasonic observation on the shear wave generated each time by using an ultrasonic probe to perform shear wave imaging on the target myocardium and generate a color elastic image of the target myocardium; The color elastic image of the target myocardium is superimposed and displayed on the ultrasound image, and when the generated color elastic image is updated, the displayed color elastic image is also updated accordingly.

[0013] In one embodiment, the acquisition of the real-time cardiac phase of the heart includes: acquiring a first type of physiological signal of the heart; the first type of physiological signal includes an electrocardiogram signal and / or a heart sound signal; and obtaining the cardiac phase according to a phase recognition model.

[0014] In one embodiment, the plurality of cardiac phases satisfying the conditions include: a cardiac phase corresponding to the end of cardiac diastole and a cardiac phase corresponding to the end of cardiac systole.

[0015] According to a third aspect, an embodiment provides a method for ultrasonic imaging of a heart, comprising: Performing a real-time ultrasonic scan on a target tissue including a heart by using an ultrasonic probe to obtain an ultrasonic image of the heart, and displaying the ultrasonic image in real time in the first area; Identify the section type of the displayed ultrasound image based on a preset section type identification model to obtain a section type identification result, and display the section type identification result in the first area; Determine whether the currently displayed ultrasound image meets the requirements according to the section type recognition result; if so, identify each myocardium contained in the currently displayed ultrasound image based on a preset myocardium recognition model and mark it in the ultrasound image; As the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated, the position of the identified myocardium is tracked; Identify the target myocardium; At multiple moments when the conditions are met, according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moments, the ultrasonic probe is controlled to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium to generate shear waves multiple times; Performing ultrasonic observation on the shear wave generated each time by using an ultrasonic probe to perform shear wave imaging on the target myocardium and generate a color elastic image of the target myocardium; The color elastic image of the target myocardium is superimposed and displayed on the ultrasound image, and when the generated color elastic image is updated, the displayed color elastic image is also updated accordingly.

[0016] In one embodiment, the determining of the target myocardium includes at least one of the following: displaying a section schematic diagram corresponding to the section type of the ultrasound image in the first region according to the section type recognition result, and marking the myocardium corresponding to the section type on the section schematic diagram; in response to a selection instruction for the myocardium marked on the section schematic diagram, determining the selected myocardium as the target myocardium; In response to an instruction to select a myocardium on the ultrasound image, determining the selected myocardium as a target myocardium; Generate and display elastic area options, wherein the elastic area options include at least two of an upper area option, a lower area option, a left area option, a right area option and an all area option; in response to a user's selection instruction for the elastic area option, determine the myocardium associated with the selected elastic area as the target myocardium; wherein the myocardium associated with the upper area option is the myocardium in the upper area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the lower area option is the myocardium in the lower area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the left area option is the myocardium in the left area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the right area option is the myocardium in the right area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, and the myocardium associated with the all area options is the myocardium in all areas of the ultrasound image of the current section type.

[0017] In one embodiment, the multiple moments satisfying the conditions include: a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac diastole and a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac systole.

[0018] According to a fourth aspect, an embodiment provides an ultrasound imaging system, including an ultrasound probe, a transceiver control circuit, a processor, and a display; The ultrasonic probe is used to transmit ultrasonic waves to the target tissue and receive echo signals of the ultrasonic waves; the transceiver control circuit is used to control the ultrasonic probe to transmit ultrasonic waves and receive echo signals of ultrasonic waves; the processor is used to process the echo signals to generate ultrasonic images; and the display is used to display the ultrasonic images; The processor is further configured to execute the method described in any one of the embodiments herein.

[0019] According to the ultrasonic imaging method and ultrasonic imaging system of the heart in the above-mentioned embodiments, in order to address the problem that the physiological movement of the heart itself poses a challenge to elastic imaging, the heart is first imaged to obtain an ultrasonic image, and then the myocardium is identified from the ultrasonic image and the position of the myocardium (e.g., the myocardial segment to be observed) is tracked so as to obtain the real-time position of the myocardium, and elastic imaging is then performed on this basis; further, considering that the heart has chamber structures such as atria and ventricles that affect the propagation of shear waves, an acoustic radiation force is applied to the myocardium to be observed (e.g., its geometric center or center of gravity) based on the real-time position of the myocardium to generate shear waves, thereby ensuring the effectiveness of shear wave generation and a sufficient signal-to-noise ratio. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0020] Figure 1 is a schematic structural diagram of an ultrasonic imaging system according to an embodiment; Figure 2 A schematic diagram of identifying each myocardium included in an ultrasound image of a heart in an embodiment; Figure 3 An example of superimposing a color elastic image on an ultrasound image in one embodiment; Figure 4 An example of superimposing a color elastic image on an ultrasound image in one embodiment; Figure 5 A flowchart of a method for ultrasonic imaging of the heart according to an embodiment; Figure 6 A flowchart of a method for ultrasonic imaging of the heart according to an embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] The present invention is further described in detail below by specific embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Wherein similar elements in different embodiments adopt associated similar element numbers. In the following embodiments, many detailed descriptions are for making the present application better understood. However, those skilled in the art can easily recognize that some features can be omitted in different situations, or can be replaced by other elements, materials, methods. In some cases, some operations related to the present application are not shown or described in the specification, this is to avoid the core part of the present application being overwhelmed by too much description, and for those skilled in the art, it is not necessary to describe these related operations in detail, and they can fully understand the related operations according to the description in the specification and the general technical knowledge in the art.

[0022] In addition, the features, operations or characteristics described in the specification can be combined in any appropriate manner to form various implementations. At the same time, the steps or actions in the method description can also be interchanged or adjusted in a manner that is obvious to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the various sequences in the specification and the drawings are only for the purpose of clearly describing a certain embodiment and are not meant to be a required sequence, unless otherwise specified that a certain sequence must be followed.

[0023] The serial numbers assigned to the components herein, such as "first", "second", etc., are only used to distinguish the objects described and do not have any order or technical meaning. The "connection" and "coupling" mentioned in this application, unless otherwise specified, include direct and indirect connections (couplings).

[0024] At present, medical ultrasound elastic imaging technology mainly includes pressure elastic imaging and shear wave elastic imaging. Pressure elastic imaging has the longest development time and the most mature technology, but it requires high skills from the operator. Pressure elastic imaging mainly produces a certain deformation by pressing the tissue with the probe. The probe calculates and images the parameters related to tissue elasticity, such as the strain and strain rate of the tissue, by emitting ultrasonic waves and receiving echo information, thereby reflecting the elastic differences between different tissues. Since strain parameters such as strain and strain rate are very sensitive to pressure, the pressure applied to the tissue by the probe in pressure elastic imaging technology needs to be kept as uniform and stable as possible, which puts high demands on the operator's skills. Shear wave elastic imaging technology mainly generates shear waves in the tissue through methods such as acoustic radiation and detects or calculates its propagation parameters (such as propagation speed). Since the elasticity (or hardness) of the tissue will affect the propagation parameters of the shear wave, the propagation parameters of the shear wave can reflect the elasticity difference (or hardness) of the tissue. In other words, the propagation parameters detected above can be used for elastic imaging. Because shear wave elastography no longer relies on the operator to apply specific pressure to the tissue like pressure elastography, it has made great progress in stability and reproducibility.

[0025] Since the heart itself has physiological movements, that is, the heart is constantly contracting and relaxing, the target tissue to be observed in the heart (such as a section of myocardium) will also move together, which brings challenges to elastic imaging; in addition, since the heart has chamber structures such as atria and ventricles, if these chamber structures happen to be located in the propagation path from the shear wave source to the target tissue to be observed, the shear wave will be greatly attenuated, and even when the shear wave propagates to the target tissue to be observed, the observation conditions are no longer available. Considering these problems, the applicant proposed an elastic imaging scheme for the heart based on ultrasound technology. In order to solve the problem that the physiological movement of the heart itself brings challenges to elastic imaging, the heart is first imaged to obtain an ultrasound image, and then the myocardium is identified from the ultrasound image and the position of the myocardium (such as the myocardial segment to be observed) is tracked to obtain the real-time position of the myocardium. On this basis, elastic imaging is performed, and in order to further reduce the influence of the diastole and contraction of the heart on the elastic imaging, the time point suitable for elastic imaging can be determined based on the cardiac phase formed by the diastole and contraction of the heart; further, considering that the heart has chamber structures such as atria and ventricles that affect the propagation of shear waves, based on the real-time position of the myocardium, an acoustic radiation force is applied to the myocardium to be observed (such as its geometric center or center of gravity) to generate shear waves, thereby ensuring the effectiveness of shear wave generation and sufficient signal-to-noise ratio. The following is a detailed description.

[0026] Please refer to Figure 1The ultrasound imaging system 100 of some embodiments includes an ultrasound probe 10, a transceiver control circuit 20, a processor 30 and a display 40, and each component is described below.

[0027] In some embodiments, the ultrasonic probe 10 is used to transmit ultrasonic waves and receive ultrasonic echo signals (i.e., ultrasonic echoes or ultrasonic echo signals). In some specific embodiments, the ultrasonic probe 10 includes a plurality of array elements for realizing mutual conversion between electrical pulse signals and ultrasonic waves, thereby transmitting ultrasonic waves to target tissues (e.g., tissues containing the heart) and receiving ultrasonic echoes reflected by the tissues to obtain ultrasonic echo signals. In some embodiments, the plurality of array elements included in the ultrasonic probe 10 can be arranged in a row to form a linear array. In some embodiments, the plurality of array elements included in the ultrasonic probe 10 are arranged in a two-dimensional matrix to form a surface array. The array element, for example, uses a piezoelectric crystal to convert an electrical signal into an ultrasonic signal according to a transmission sequence transmitted by the transceiver control circuit 20. Depending on the purpose, the transmitted ultrasonic wave (ultrasound signal) may include one or more scanning pulses, one or more reference pulses, one or more push pulses and / or one or more Doppler pulses. According to the wave form, the ultrasonic signal includes a focused wave, a plane wave, and a divergent wave. The array element is used to transmit an ultrasonic wave according to an excitation electrical signal, or to convert a received ultrasonic wave into an electrical signal. Therefore, each array element can be used to realize the mutual conversion between the electric pulse signal and the ultrasonic wave, so as to realize the transmission of the ultrasonic wave to the target tissue, and can also be used to receive the echo signal of the ultrasonic wave reflected back by the tissue. When performing ultrasonic detection, the transceiver control circuit 20 can be used to control which array elements are used to transmit the ultrasonic beam (transmitting array element) and which array elements are used to receive the ultrasonic beam (receiving array element), or control the array elements to transmit the ultrasonic wave or receive the ultrasonic wave echo in time slots. The array elements participating in the ultrasonic wave transmission can be excited by the electric signal at the same time, so as to transmit the ultrasonic wave at the same time; or the array elements participating in the ultrasonic wave transmission can also be excited by several electric signals with a certain time interval, so as to continuously transmit the ultrasonic wave with a certain time interval. If the minimum processing area for receiving and reflecting the ultrasonic wave in the target tissue is called the position point in the tissue, then after the ultrasonic wave reaches each position point of the target tissue, different reflections will be generated due to the different tissue acoustic impedances at different position points, and the reflected ultrasonic wave will be picked up by the receiving array element, and each receiving array element may receive the echoes of the ultrasonic wave of multiple position points (ultrasonic echo), and the ultrasonic echoes of different position points received by each receiving array element form different channel echo data. For a certain receiving array element, the distance from it to different positions in the target tissue is different, so the time for the ultrasonic echo reflected from each position point to reach the array element is also different. The correspondence between the ultrasonic echo and the position point can be identified based on the time when the ultrasonic echo reaches the array element.

[0028] The transceiver control circuit 20 is used to control the ultrasonic probe 10 to transmit ultrasonic waves and receive ultrasonic echoes. For example, the transceiver control circuit 20 is used to control the ultrasonic probe 10 to transmit ultrasonic waves to the target tissue on the one hand, and to control the ultrasonic probe 10 to receive ultrasonic echoes reflected by the tissue on the other hand. In some specific embodiments, the transceiver control circuit 20 is used to generate a transmission sequence and a reception sequence, and output them to the ultrasonic probe 10. The transmission sequence is used to control part or all of the multiple array elements in the ultrasonic probe 10 to transmit ultrasonic waves to the target tissue. The parameters of the transmission sequence include the number of array elements used for transmission and ultrasonic transmission parameters (such as pulse amplitude, transmission voltage, transmission frequency, number of waves, transmission interval, transmission angle, transmission waveform, transmission aperture, line density, point density and / or focal position, etc.). The receiving sequence is used to control part or all of the multiple array elements to receive the echo of the ultrasonic wave after passing through the tissue. The parameters of the receiving sequence include the number of array elements used for reception and the reception parameters of the echo (such as reception angle, depth, etc.). The ultrasonic parameters in the transmission sequence and the echo parameters in the reception sequence are different depending on the use of the ultrasonic echo or the image generated according to the ultrasonic echo.

[0029] The processor 30 is used to process the ultrasonic echo signal (i.e., the ultrasonic echo signal) received by the ultrasonic probe 10, for example, one or more links of processing of the ultrasonic echo signal / channel echo data, such as analog-to-digital conversion, signal demodulation, amplification, filtering, downsampling, beam synthesis, modulus, logarithmic compression and / or grayscale conversion. The processor 30 can finally obtain an ultrasonic image by processing the ultrasonic echo signal for display by the display 40. The processor 30 in some embodiments includes but is not limited to a central processing unit (CPU), a microcontroller unit (MCU), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), and a digital signal processing (DSP) for interpreting computer instructions and processing data in computer software. In some embodiments, the processor 30 is used to execute each computer application in the non-temporary computer-readable storage medium, so as to execute the corresponding method.

[0030] The display 40 may be used to display information, such as displaying parameters and images calculated by the processor 30. Those skilled in the art should understand that, in some embodiments, the ultrasound imaging system itself may not integrate a display module, but may be connected to a computer device (such as a computer) to display information through a display module (such as a display screen) of the computer device.

[0031] The above is some description of the ultrasound imaging system 100 .

[0032] There are many methods for generating shear waves in a target area (such as the target myocardium mentioned in this article), such as emitting special pulses (such as acoustic radiation force impulse, ARFI, acoustic radiation force impulse) to the target area through an ultrasonic probe 10 to generate shear waves in the target area. When generating shear waves in the target area through acoustic radiation force pulses, the acoustic radiation force pulses can be focused or unfocused. Specifically, when the acoustic radiation force pulses are strongly concentrated, the wave source of the generated shear wave is more concentrated, and when they are weakly concentrated, the range of shear wave generation is wider. Within the range of shear wave generation, it can be approximately regarded as having multiple shear wave point sources propagating from multiple starting points; in addition, the range can also be widened by directly generating shear waves at multiple different positions. Taking acoustic radiation force pulses as an example, by emitting acoustic radiation force pulses multiple times and focusing them on different areas respectively, the propagation of shear waves starting from different positions can be generated.

[0033] The present application proposes one or more elastic imaging modes for cardiac ultrasound imaging, especially elastic imaging, such as any one, any two or three of the first elastic imaging mode, the second elastic imaging mode and the third elastic imaging mode mentioned herein. The following is an explanation in conjunction with the imaging process.

[0034] 1. Ultrasound imaging of the heart In some embodiments, the processor 30 controls the transceiver control circuit 20 to perform a real-time ultrasonic scan on the target tissue including the heart through the ultrasonic probe 10 to obtain an ultrasonic image of the heart, and the processor 30 controls the display 40 to display the ultrasonic image in real time in the first area; for example, the ultrasonic probe 10 performs real-time ultrasonic transmission and echo signal reception to the target tissue including the heart, the processor 30 generates an ultrasonic image including the heart based on the echo signal, and the display 40 displays the real-time ultrasonic image in the first area. In some examples, the ultrasonic image may be a B image.

[0035] 2. Identification of Aspect Types In some embodiments, the processor 30 identifies the section type of the displayed ultrasound image based on a preset section type identification model to obtain a section type identification result, and controls the display 40 to display the section type identification result in the first area.

[0036] The section types of ultrasound images of the heart include, but are not limited to, parasternal long-axis section type, parasternal short-axis section type, apical long-axis section type, apical short-axis section type, etc. Ultrasound images of the heart with different section types can observe the tissue structure of the heart from different section angles.

[0037] The section type recognition model can be constructed based on the traditional section type recognition algorithm. For example, for the ultrasound image to be identified, the image features in the image are extracted. The image features can be anatomical structure features in the ultrasound image, and then the section type of the ultrasound image is judged based on the image features. The section type recognition model mentioned in this article can also be an artificial intelligence model, such as an artificial intelligence model constructed by an artificial neural network. The artificial intelligence model is trained by constructing a training set. The samples in the training set are ultrasound images of the heart, and the labels of the samples can be manually marked section types.

[0038] 3. Identification and tracking of myocardium The processor 30 determines whether the currently displayed ultrasound image meets the requirements based on the section type recognition result, for example, whether the currently displayed ultrasound image belongs to the expected section type. If it meets the requirements, the processor 30 identifies each myocardium contained in the currently displayed ultrasound image of the heart based on the preset myocardial recognition model and marks it in the ultrasound image; in some examples, the processor 30 identifies the myocardium contained in the currently displayed ultrasound image of the heart corresponding to the section type of the ultrasound image based on the preset myocardial recognition model.

[0039] The myocardial segments of the heart are usually defined based on the segmentation of the left ventricular myocardium. This division helps doctors accurately identify and evaluate different parts of the heart in echocardiography or other imaging techniques. There are many models for the segmentation of the left ventricular myocardium, among which the most commonly used are the 16-segment model and the 17-segment model; take the 16-segment model as an example, it divides the left ventricular myocardium into three myocardial rings, namely the basal ring, the middle ring and the apical ring, and the height of each ring is 1 / 3 of the length of the left ventricle; the basal ring includes the anterior wall basal segment, the anterior septal basal segment, the inferior septal basal segment, the inferior wall basal segment, the inferior lateral wall basal segment and the anterior lateral wall basal segment, a total of 6 segments (or types of myocardium); the middle ring includes the anterior wall middle segment, the anterior septal middle segment, the inferior septal middle segment, the inferior wall middle segment, the inferior lateral wall middle segment and the anterior lateral wall middle segment, also 6 segments (or types of myocardium); the apical ring includes the anterior wall apical segment, the septal apical segment, the inferior wall apical segment and the lateral wall apical segment, a total of 4 segments (or types of myocardium).

[0040] The myocardial recognition model can be constructed based on traditional recognition algorithms, for example, by segmenting the ultrasound image to be identified and segmenting the features representing the tissue structure in the image, thereby realizing the recognition of the myocardium; the myocardial recognition model mentioned in this article can also be an artificial intelligence model, such as an artificial intelligence model constructed using an artificial neural network, and the artificial intelligence model is trained by constructing a training set. The samples in the training set are ultrasound images of the heart, and the labels of the samples can be the location and type of the myocardium that are manually marked.

[0041] As the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated, the processor 30 tracks the position of the identified myocardium. There are many ways for the processor 30 to implement the position tracking of the myocardium. For example, the processor 30 can use the speckle tracking technology based on the B image to implement it. The speckle tracking technology based on the B image is to track the position of the same ultrasound spot in the B image, so as to determine the position change relationship of the corresponding myocardium. When the motion displacement and deformation of the tissue corresponding to the myocardium are small, it can be approximately considered that the speckle pattern of the tissue remains fixed, so the motion tracking of the specific tissue can be achieved by tracking the movement of the specific spot in the B-ultrasound image.

[0042] In some embodiments, the processor 30 controls the display 40 to mark the identified myocardium in the ultrasound image. For example, the processor 30 marks and displays the shape and position of the identified myocardium in the currently displayed ultrasound image by superimposing a contour shape mark. It can be understood that as the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated, as described above, the processor 30 will also track the position of the identified myocardium, and thus can also update the contour shape mark superimposed on the ultrasound image based on the position tracking result.

[0043] 4. Determine the target myocardium In some embodiments, the processor 30 determines a target myocardium, which is the myocardium to be subjected to elastic imaging. The following describes how to determine the target myocardium.

[0044] In some embodiments, the processor 30 displays a section diagram corresponding to the section type of the ultrasound image in the first area according to the section type identification result, and marks the myocardium corresponding to the section type on the section diagram; in response to a selection instruction for the myocardium marked on the section diagram, the processor 30 determines the selected myocardium as the target myocardium.

[0045] In some embodiments, in response to an instruction to select a myocardium on the ultrasound image, the processor 30 determines the selected myocardium as a target myocardium.

[0046] In some embodiments, the processor 30 generates elastic area options and controls the display 40 to display, generates and displays elastic area options, and the elastic area options include at least two of an upper area option, a lower area option, a left area option, a right area option and an all area option; in response to a user's selection instruction for the elastic area option, the processor 30 determines the myocardium associated with the selected elastic area as the target myocardium; wherein the myocardium associated with the upper area option is the myocardium in the upper area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the lower area option is the myocardium in the lower area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the left area option is the myocardium in the left area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the right area option is the myocardium in the right area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, and the myocardium associated with the all area options is the myocardium in all areas of the ultrasound image of the current section type. It can be understood that the division of the ultrasound image into the upper area, the lower area, the left area and the right area can be achieved by first determining a center point in the ultrasound image, and then drawing a parallel line based on the center point to divide the upper area and the lower area, and drawing a vertical line based on the center point to divide the left area and the right area.

[0047] The target myocardium may be one or more, which is determined based on the imaging requirements of the user.

[0048] 5. Elastography of the target myocardium The present application proposes one or more elastic imaging modes for ultrasonic imaging of the heart, especially elastic imaging.

[0049] In some embodiments, in the first elastic imaging mode: the processor 30 controls the ultrasound probe 10 to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding time at multiple times when the conditions are met to generate shear waves multiple times; the processor 30 performs ultrasonic observation of the shear wave generated each time through the ultrasound probe 10 to perform shear wave imaging of the target myocardium and generate a color elastic image of the target myocardium.

[0050] In the first elastic imaging mode, acoustic radiation force is applied to the target myocardium through the real-time position of the target myocardium, which can greatly reduce the influence of the movement of the heart itself on the target myocardium during elastic imaging. At the same time, elastic imaging is performed at multiple moments that meet the conditions, which further reduces the influence of the contraction and relaxation of the heart itself on the target myocardium during elastic imaging.

[0051] The elastic imaging mode mentioned above also involves moments that meet the conditions. In some embodiments, multiple moments that meet the conditions include: the moment corresponding to the end of diastole and the moment corresponding to the end of systole. An implementation process may be: the processor 30 obtains the real-time cardiac phase of the heart, for example, obtains the first type of physiological signal of the heart, the first type of physiological signal includes an electrocardiogram signal and / or a heart sound signal; the processor 30 obtains the cardiac phase according to the phase recognition model, thereby determining multiple moments that meet the conditions, such as the moment corresponding to the end of diastole and the moment corresponding to the end of systole.

[0052] Furthermore, in some embodiments, these moments satisfying the conditions are related to cardiac phases, and elastic imaging can be performed at least twice in one cardiac cycle.

[0053] In some embodiments, the multiple moments satisfying the conditions under the first elastic imaging include: a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac diastole and a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac systole.

[0054] In some embodiments, in the first elastic imaging mode, the processor 30 further marks the triggering position of the shear wave on the cut surface schematic diagram to prompt the user.

[0055] In some embodiments, in the second elastic imaging mode: the processor 30 performs ultrasonic observation of shear waves generated by spontaneous physiological phenomena of the heart at the real-time position of the target myocardium at corresponding moments at multiple moments when conditions are met through the ultrasound probe 10 to perform shear wave imaging of the target myocardium and generate a color elastic image of the target myocardium.

[0056] In the second elastic imaging mode, elastic imaging is performed at multiple moments that meet the conditions, which can reduce the influence of the contraction and relaxation of the heart itself on the target myocardium during elastic imaging; at the same time, shear waves are not generated based on acoustic radiation force but shear waves generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomena of the heart, so that the ultrasound probe 10 does not have to spend time and power to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium, but can concentrate on emitting ultrasonic waves for observing shear waves to the target myocardium based on the real-time position of the target myocardium and receiving corresponding echo signals, so as to achieve purposeful observation.

[0057] In the second elastic imaging mode and the third elastic imaging mode of this article, shear waves generated by spontaneous physiological phenomena of the heart are mentioned, such as valve closure, atrial contraction, etc. Taking valve closure as an example, it can be understood that elastic imaging of the myocardium close to the valve is more accurate, so this elastic imaging mode can be used when the target myocardium is the myocardium close to the valve.

[0058] The elastic imaging mode mentioned above also involves moments that meet the conditions. In some embodiments, multiple moments that meet the conditions include: the moment of mitral valve closure and the moment of aortic closure. An implementation process may be: the processor 30 obtains the real-time cardiac phase of the heart, for example, obtains the first type of physiological signal of the heart, the first type of physiological signal includes an electrocardiogram signal and / or a heart sound signal; the processor 30 obtains the cardiac phase according to the phase recognition model, thereby determining multiple moments that meet the conditions, such as the moment of mitral valve closure and the moment of aortic closure.

[0059] Furthermore, in some embodiments, these moments satisfying the conditions are related to cardiac phases, and elastic imaging can be performed at least twice in one cardiac cycle.

[0060] In some embodiments, the multiple moments satisfying the conditions under the second elastic imaging include: a mitral valve closure moment and an aortic closure moment.

[0061] In some embodiments, in the second elastic imaging mode: the processor 30 further marks the mechanism and / or position of the shear wave generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomenon of the heart on the cross-sectional diagram to prompt the user.

[0062] In some embodiments, in the third elastic imaging mode: the processor 30 controls the ultrasound probe 10 to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding time at multiple moments when the conditions are met to generate shear waves multiple times; the processor 30 ultrasonically observes the shear wave generated each time through the ultrasound probe 10 to perform shear wave imaging of the target myocardium and generate a first color elastic image of the target myocardium; and, the processor 30 ultrasonically observes the shear waves generated by spontaneous physiological phenomena of the heart through the ultrasound probe 10 at the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding time at multiple moments when the conditions are met to perform shear wave imaging of the target myocardium and generate a second color elastic image of the target myocardium; the processor 30 generates a color elastic image of the target myocardium based on the first color elastic image and the second color elastic image.

[0063] It can be seen that the third elastic imaging mode is essentially a hybrid elastic imaging that combines the first elastic imaging mode and the second elastic imaging mode. Since the first elastic imaging mode and the second elastic imaging mode are elastic imaging based on shear waves generated for different reasons, the two modes are essentially two different angles to qualitatively or quantitatively evaluate the elastic parameters of the target myocardium. Therefore, the color elastic images generated by the two modes can be weighted to obtain the final color elastic image. When performing weighted calculations, the weight coefficients can vary with the type of the target myocardium.

[0064] In some embodiments, the multiple moments satisfying the conditions for applying the acoustic radiation force in the third elastic imaging mode include: a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac diastole and a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac systole.

[0065] In some embodiments, the third elastic imaging mode involves multiple moments satisfying the conditions for ultrasonic observation of shear waves generated by spontaneous cardiac physiological phenomena by the ultrasound probe 10, including: the mitral valve closure moment and the aortic closure moment.

[0066] In any of the above elastic imaging modes, after generating the color elastic image of the target myocardium, the processor 30 superimposes and displays the color elastic image of the target myocardium on the ultrasound image. When the generated color elastic image is updated, the displayed color elastic image is also updated accordingly.

[0067] In addition, the processor 30 can also calculate the shear wave velocity, elasticity value, etc. of the target myocardium by ultrasonic observation of the shear wave; it also supports local measurement and statistical analysis (such as mean, maximum / minimum value, standard deviation, etc.) of the elastic imaging area after the ultrasound image is frozen.

[0068] In any of the above elastic imaging modes, after elastic imaging is performed based on the current elastic imaging mode under an ultrasound image of one section type, another section type to be scanned next can be determined based on the target myocardium, and elastic imaging of the target myocardium can be continued based on the previous elastic imaging mode under the ultrasound image of the other section type. This is because ultrasound images of different section types can observe the myocardium from different angles, so the present application considers observing the shear wave of the myocardium from different angles, so as to obtain more information about the elastic parameters of the myocardium.

[0069] Therefore, in some embodiments, after elastic imaging is performed based on the current elastic imaging mode when the ultrasound image is of the first section type - the ultrasound image of the first section type can be the ultrasound image that meets the requirements mentioned in this article; the processor 30 also determines the second section type to be scanned next based on the target myocardium, and prompts the user to move or rotate the ultrasound probe 10; as the ultrasound probe moves, when the displayed ultrasound image is identified as the second section type based on the section type recognition model, the processor 30 generates information prompting the user to stop the movement of the ultrasound probe; and when the ultrasound image is of the second section type, the processor 30 controls elastic imaging based on the current elastic imaging mode (that is, the elastic imaging mode used when elastic imaging was performed when the ultrasound image was of the first section type).

[0070] In addition, multiple section types can be pre-associated with the target myocardium, and after scanning one section type, the next section type will continue to be scanned until all section types of the valve associated with the target myocardium are scanned; in some embodiments, when an ultrasound image of each section type of the target myocardium is obtained by scanning, elastic imaging is performed based on the same elastic imaging mode; in some embodiments, when an ultrasound image of each section type of the target myocardium is obtained by scanning, the elastic imaging mode can also be reselected or determined based on the section type of the ultrasound image, which will be mentioned further below.

[0071] In some embodiments including multiple elastic imaging modes, a user may manually select a current elastic imaging mode.

[0072] In some embodiments including multiple elastic imaging modes, the processor 30 may also automatically determine the current elastic imaging mode.

[0073] Different types of myocardium are suitable for different elastic imaging modes, which can pre-set elastic imaging modes corresponding to each type of myocardium. When the product is implemented, all elastic imaging modes can be performed on each type of myocardium; for the same type of myocardium (that is, the same section of myocardium), the color elastic images obtained under various elastic imaging conditions are compared to determine the elastic imaging mode that matches this type of myocardium. When comparing the color elastic images obtained under various elastic imaging conditions of the myocardium, the image quality of these color elastic images can be calculated, and the image quality can include but is not limited to clarity, contrast, signal-to-noise ratio, etc.; the elastic imaging mode corresponding to the color elastic image with the best image quality is determined as the elastic imaging mode that matches this type of myocardium.

[0074] Therefore, in some embodiments, after determining the target myocardium, the processor 30 selects an elastic imaging mode that matches the type of the target myocardium from a plurality of elastic imaging modes as the current elastic imaging mode according to the type of the target myocardium.

[0075] In addition, ultrasound images of different section types can observe the tissue structure of the heart from different angles, so ultrasound images of different section types also correspond to myocardial types that can be better observed in their images, and therefore the elastic imaging mode is also determined based on the section type of the ultrasound image. In some embodiments, the processor 30 selects an elastic imaging mode that matches the section type of the current ultrasound image from multiple elastic imaging modes according to the section type recognition result as the current elastic imaging mode.

[0076] It should be noted that this article mentions generating shear waves based on acoustic radiation force and performing elastic imaging, as well as performing elastic imaging using shear waves generated by spontaneous physiological phenomena of the heart. Although the methods or principles of generating shear waves are different, the method of ultrasonically observing shear waves through the ultrasonic probe 10 can be the same or different. The present application does not limit this, and during implementation, the existing method of ultrasonically observing shear waves can be directly used.

[0077] Figure 2 In order to identify the myocardium contained in the ultrasound image of the heart and mark them in the ultrasound image, a yellow dotted outline shape mark is superimposed on the ultrasound image to mark and display the myocardium; a section diagram is displayed in the upper left corner of the ultrasound image, where PLAX indicates that the section type is the parasternal long axis section; in addition, a section of the physiological signal of the heart is displayed below the ultrasound image.

[0078] Figure 3 and Figure 4 Figure 2 shows two examples of superimposing color elastic images on ultrasound images, where ES represents the moment of aortic closure and ED represents the moment of mitral valve closure.

[0079] Please refer to Figure 5 Some embodiments also disclose a cardiac ultrasound imaging method 101, comprising the following steps: Step 110: Scan and image the target tissue including the heart in real time.

[0080] In some embodiments, step 110 performs a real-time ultrasonic scan of a target tissue including a heart by using the ultrasonic probe 10 to obtain an ultrasonic image of the heart, and displays the ultrasonic image in real time in the first area. In some examples, the ultrasonic image may be a B image.

[0081] Step 120: Identify the section type of the ultrasound image.

[0082] In some embodiments, step 120 identifies the section type of the displayed ultrasound image based on a preset section type identification model to obtain a section type identification result, and controls the display 40 to display the section type identification result in the first area.

[0083] The section type recognition model can be constructed based on the traditional section type recognition algorithm. For example, for the ultrasound image to be identified, the image features in the image are extracted. The image features can be anatomical structure features in the ultrasound image, and then the section type of the ultrasound image is judged based on the image features. The section type recognition model mentioned in this article can also be an artificial intelligence model, such as an artificial intelligence model constructed by an artificial neural network. The artificial intelligence model is trained by constructing a training set. The samples in the training set are ultrasound images of the heart, and the labels of the samples can be manually marked section types.

[0084] Step 130: Identify the myocardium in the ultrasound image.

[0085] In some embodiments, step 130 determines whether the currently displayed ultrasound image meets the requirements based on the section type recognition result, for example, determines whether the currently displayed ultrasound image belongs to the expected section type; if it does, then the myocardium contained in the currently displayed ultrasound image of the heart is identified based on a preset myocardial recognition model, and marked in the ultrasound image; in some examples, step 130 identifies the myocardium contained in the currently displayed ultrasound image of the heart that corresponds to the section type of the ultrasound image based on a preset myocardial recognition model.

[0086] The myocardial recognition model can be constructed based on traditional recognition algorithms, for example, by segmenting the ultrasound image to be identified and segmenting the features representing the tissue structure in the image, thereby realizing the recognition of the myocardium; the myocardial recognition model mentioned in this article can also be an artificial intelligence model, such as an artificial intelligence model constructed using an artificial neural network, and the artificial intelligence model is trained by constructing a training set. The samples in the training set are ultrasound images of the heart, and the labels of the samples can be the location and type of the myocardium that are manually marked.

[0087] Step 140: Track the position of the myocardium identified in the ultrasound image.

[0088] In some embodiments, as the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated, step 140: position tracking of the identified myocardium is performed. Step 140: There are multiple ways to implement position tracking of the myocardium, for example, step 140: can be implemented using a speckle tracking technique based on a B image, which tracks the position of the same ultrasound speckle in the B image to determine the position change relationship of the corresponding myocardium. When the motion displacement and deformation of the tissue corresponding to the myocardium are small, it can be approximately considered that the speckle pattern of the tissue remains fixed, so the motion tracking of the specific tissue can be achieved by tracking the movement of the specific speckle in the B-ultrasound image.

[0089] In some embodiments, step 140 marks the identified myocardium in the ultrasound image, for example, the processor 30 marks and displays the shape and position of the identified myocardium in the currently displayed ultrasound image by superimposing a contour shape mark. It can be understood that as the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated, as described above, step 140 will also track the position of the identified myocardium, and thus the contour shape mark superimposed on the ultrasound image can also be updated based on the position tracking result.

[0090] Step 150: Determine the target myocardium.

[0091] The target myocardium is the myocardium to be subjected to elastic imaging. The following describes how to determine the target myocardium.

[0092] In some embodiments, step 150 displays a section diagram corresponding to the section type of the ultrasound image in the first area according to the section type identification result, and marks the myocardium corresponding to the section type on the section diagram; in response to a selection instruction for the myocardium marked on the section diagram, step 150 determines the selected myocardium as the target myocardium.

[0093] In some embodiments, in response to an instruction to select a myocardium on the ultrasound image, step 150 determines the selected myocardium as a target myocardium.

[0094] In some embodiments, step 150 generates and displays elastic area options, which include at least two of an upper area option, a lower area option, a left area option, a right area option and an all area option; in response to a user's selection instruction for the elastic area option, the myocardium associated with the selected elastic area is determined as the target myocardium; wherein the myocardium associated with the upper area option is the myocardium in the upper area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the lower area option is the myocardium in the lower area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the left area option is the myocardium in the left area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the right area option is the myocardium in the right area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, and the myocardium associated with the all area options is the myocardium in all areas of the ultrasound image of the current section type.

[0095] The target myocardium may be one or more, which is determined based on the imaging requirements of the user.

[0096] Step 160: Perform elastic imaging on the target myocardium.

[0097] The present application proposes one or more elastic imaging modes for ultrasonic imaging of the heart, especially elastic imaging.

[0098] In some embodiments, in the first elastic imaging mode: step 160 controls the ultrasound probe 10 to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding time at multiple times when the conditions are met to generate shear waves multiple times; step 160 performs ultrasonic observation of the shear wave generated each time through the ultrasound probe 10 to perform shear wave imaging of the target myocardium and generate a color elastic image of the target myocardium.

[0099] In the first elastic imaging mode, acoustic radiation force is applied to the target myocardium through the real-time position of the target myocardium, which can greatly reduce the influence of the movement of the heart itself on the target myocardium during elastic imaging. At the same time, elastic imaging is performed at multiple moments that meet the conditions, which further reduces the influence of the contraction and relaxation of the heart itself on the target myocardium during elastic imaging.

[0100] The elastic imaging mode mentioned above also involves moments that meet the conditions. In some embodiments, multiple moments that meet the conditions include: the moment corresponding to the end of diastole and the moment corresponding to the end of systole. An implementation process may be: the processor 30 obtains the real-time cardiac phase of the heart, for example, obtains the first type of physiological signal of the heart, the first type of physiological signal includes an electrocardiogram signal and / or a heart sound signal; the processor 30 obtains the cardiac phase according to the phase recognition model, thereby determining multiple moments that meet the conditions, such as the moment corresponding to the end of diastole and the moment corresponding to the end of systole.

[0101] Furthermore, in some embodiments, these moments satisfying the conditions are related to cardiac phases, and elastic imaging can be performed at least twice in one cardiac cycle.

[0102] In some embodiments, the multiple moments satisfying the conditions under the first elastic imaging include: a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac diastole and a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac systole.

[0103] In some embodiments, in the first elastic imaging mode, step 160 further marks the triggering position of the shear wave on the cut surface schematic diagram to prompt the user.

[0104] In some embodiments, in the second elastic imaging mode: step 160 ultrasonically observes the shear waves generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomenon of the heart at the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding time through the ultrasound probe 10 at multiple time moments when the conditions are met, so as to perform shear wave imaging of the target myocardium and generate a color elastic image of the target myocardium.

[0105] In the second elastic imaging mode, elastic imaging is performed at multiple moments that meet the conditions, which can reduce the influence of the contraction and relaxation of the heart itself on the target myocardium during elastic imaging; at the same time, shear waves are not generated based on acoustic radiation force but shear waves generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomena of the heart, so that the ultrasound probe 10 does not have to spend time and power to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium, but can concentrate on emitting ultrasonic waves for observing shear waves to the target myocardium based on the real-time position of the target myocardium and receiving corresponding echo signals, so as to achieve purposeful observation.

[0106] In the second elastic imaging mode and the third elastic imaging mode of this article, shear waves generated by spontaneous physiological phenomena of the heart are mentioned, such as valve closure, atrial contraction, etc. Taking valve closure as an example, it can be understood that elastic imaging of the myocardium close to the valve is more accurate, so this elastic imaging mode can be used when the target myocardium is the myocardium close to the valve.

[0107] The elastic imaging mode mentioned above also involves moments that meet the conditions. In some embodiments, multiple moments that meet the conditions include: the mitral valve closure moment and the aortic closure moment. An implementation process may be: step 160 obtains the real-time cardiac phase of the heart, such as obtaining the first type of physiological signal of the heart, the first type of physiological signal includes an electrocardiogram signal and / or a heart sound signal; the processor 30 obtains the cardiac phase according to the phase recognition model, thereby determining multiple moments that meet the conditions, such as the mitral valve closure moment and the aortic closure moment.

[0108] Furthermore, in some embodiments, these moments satisfying the conditions are related to cardiac phases, and elastic imaging can be performed at least twice in one cardiac cycle.

[0109] In some embodiments, the multiple moments satisfying the conditions under the second elastic imaging include: a mitral valve closure moment and an aortic closure moment.

[0110] In some embodiments, in the second elastic imaging mode: Step 160 further marks the mechanism and / or position of the shear wave generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomenon of the heart on the cross-sectional diagram to prompt the user.

[0111] In some embodiments, in the third elastic imaging mode: step 160 controls the ultrasound probe 10 to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding time at multiple moments when the conditions are met to generate shear waves multiple times; step 160 ultrasonically observes the shear wave generated each time through the ultrasound probe 10 to perform shear wave imaging of the target myocardium and generate a first color elastic image of the target myocardium; and step 160 ultrasonically observes the shear waves generated by spontaneous physiological phenomena of the heart through the ultrasound probe 10 at the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding time at multiple moments when the conditions are met to perform shear wave imaging of the target myocardium and generate a second color elastic image of the target myocardium; the processor 30 generates a color elastic image of the target myocardium based on the first color elastic image and the second color elastic image.

[0112] It can be seen that the third elastic imaging mode is essentially a hybrid elastic imaging that combines the first elastic imaging mode and the second elastic imaging mode. Since the first elastic imaging mode and the second elastic imaging mode are elastic imaging based on shear waves generated for different reasons, the two modes are essentially two different angles to qualitatively or quantitatively evaluate the elastic parameters of the target myocardium. Therefore, the color elastic images generated by the two modes can be weighted to obtain the final color elastic image. When performing weighted calculations, the weight coefficients can vary with the type of the target myocardium.

[0113] In some embodiments, the multiple moments satisfying the conditions for applying the acoustic radiation force in the third elastic imaging mode include: a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac diastole and a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac systole.

[0114] In some embodiments, the third elastic imaging mode involves multiple moments satisfying the conditions for ultrasonic observation of shear waves generated by spontaneous cardiac physiological phenomena by the ultrasound probe 10, including: the mitral valve closure moment and the aortic closure moment.

[0115] In any of the above elastic imaging modes, after the color elastic image of the target myocardium is generated, step 160 overlays and displays the color elastic image of the target myocardium on the ultrasound image. When the generated color elastic image is updated, the displayed color elastic image is also updated accordingly.

[0116] In any of the above elastic imaging modes, after elastic imaging is performed based on the current elastic imaging mode under an ultrasound image of one section type, another section type to be scanned next can be determined based on the target myocardium, and elastic imaging of the target myocardium can be continued based on the previous elastic imaging mode under the ultrasound image of the other section type. This is because ultrasound images of different section types can observe the myocardium from different angles, so the present application considers observing the shear wave of the myocardium from different angles, so as to obtain more information about the elastic parameters of the myocardium.

[0117] Therefore, in some embodiments, after elastic imaging is performed based on the current elastic imaging mode when the ultrasound image is of the first section type - the ultrasound image of the first section type can be the ultrasound image that meets the requirements mentioned in this article; step 160 also determines the second section type to be scanned next based on the target myocardium, and prompts the user to move or rotate the ultrasound probe 10; as the ultrasound probe moves, when the displayed ultrasound image is identified as the second section type based on the section type recognition model, step 160 generates information prompting the user to stop the movement of the ultrasound probe; and when the ultrasound image is of the second section type, step 160 controls elastic imaging based on the current elastic imaging mode (that is, the elastic imaging mode used when elastic imaging was performed when the ultrasound image was of the first section type).

[0118] In addition, multiple section types can be pre-associated with the target myocardium, and after scanning one section type, the next section type will continue to be scanned until all section types of the valve associated with the target myocardium are scanned; in some embodiments, when an ultrasound image of each section type of the target myocardium is obtained by scanning, elastic imaging is performed based on the same elastic imaging mode; in some embodiments, when an ultrasound image of each section type of the target myocardium is obtained by scanning, the elastic imaging mode can also be reselected or determined based on the section type of the ultrasound image, which will be mentioned further below.

[0119] In some embodiments including multiple elastic imaging modes, a user may manually select a current elastic imaging mode.

[0120] In some embodiments including multiple elastic imaging modes, the current elastic imaging mode may also be automatically determined. Figure 6In some embodiments, the cardiac ultrasound imaging method 101 further includes step 170: automatically selecting the current elastic imaging mode. For example, after determining the target myocardium, step 170 selects an elastic imaging mode that matches the type of the target myocardium from a plurality of elastic imaging modes as the current elastic imaging mode according to the type of the target myocardium; for another example, step 170 selects an elastic imaging mode that matches the section type of the current ultrasound image from a plurality of elastic imaging modes according to the section type recognition result as the current elastic imaging mode. After determining the current elastic imaging mode in step 170, step 160 performs elastic imaging on the target myocardium based on the determined elastic imaging mode.

[0121] This document is described with reference to various exemplary embodiments. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that changes and modifications may be made to the exemplary embodiments without departing from the scope of this document. For example, various operating steps and components for performing the operating steps may be implemented in different ways (e.g., one or more steps may be deleted, modified, or combined into other steps) depending on the specific application or considering any number of cost functions associated with the operation of the system.

[0122] In the above embodiments, it can be implemented in whole or in part by software, hardware, firmware or any combination thereof. In addition, as understood by those skilled in the art, the principles of this article can be reflected in a computer program product on a computer-readable storage medium, which is pre-installed with a computer-readable program code. Any tangible, non-temporary computer-readable storage medium can be used, including magnetic storage devices (hard disks, floppy disks, etc.), optical storage devices (CD to ROM, DVD, Blue Ray disks, etc.), flash memory and / or the like. These computer program instructions can be loaded onto a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, or other programmable data processing device to form a machine, so that these instructions executed on a computer or other programmable data processing device can generate a device that implements a specified function. These computer program instructions can also be stored in a computer-readable memory, which can instruct a computer or other programmable data processing device to operate in a specific manner, so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory can form a manufactured product, including an implementation device that implements a specified function. Computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device, so that a series of operating steps are performed on a computer or other programmable device to generate a computer-implemented process, so that the instructions executed on a computer or other programmable device can provide steps for implementing a specified function.

[0123] Although the principles of this invention have been shown in various embodiments, many modifications of structures, arrangements, proportions, elements, materials and components particularly suitable for specific environments and operational requirements can be used without departing from the principles and scope of this invention. The above modifications and other changes or amendments will be included in the scope of this invention.

[0124] The foregoing specific description has been described with reference to various embodiments. However, those skilled in the art will recognize that various modifications and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Therefore, the consideration of the present disclosure will be illustrative rather than restrictive, and all these modifications will be included in its scope. Similarly, the advantages, other advantages and solutions to the problems of various embodiments have been described above. However, the benefits, advantages, solutions to the problems and any elements that can produce these, or make them more clear, should not be interpreted as critical, necessary or necessary. The term "include" and any other variants used in this article are all non-exclusive inclusions, so that the process, method, article or device including the list of elements not only includes these elements, but also includes other elements that are not explicitly listed or do not belong to the process, method, system, article or device. In addition, the term "coupled" and any other variants used in this article refer to physical connections, electrical connections, magnetic connections, optical connections, communication connections, functional connections and / or any other connections.

[0125] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that many changes may be made to the details of the above-described embodiments without departing from the basic principles of the invention. Therefore, the scope of the present invention should be determined solely by the claims.

Claims

1. A method for ultrasonic imaging of the heart, characterized in that: include: Performing a real-time ultrasonic scan on a target tissue including a heart by using an ultrasonic probe to obtain an ultrasonic image of the heart, and displaying the ultrasonic image in real time in the first area; Identify the section type of the displayed ultrasound image based on a preset section type identification model to obtain a section type identification result, and display the section type identification result in the first area; Determine whether the currently displayed ultrasound image meets the requirements according to the section type recognition result; if so, identify each myocardium contained in the currently displayed ultrasound image based on a preset myocardium recognition model and mark it in the ultrasound image; As the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated, the position of the identified myocardium is tracked; Identify the target myocardium; In the first elastic imaging mode: at multiple moments when conditions are met, the ultrasonic probe is controlled to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moments to generate shear waves multiple times; the shear waves generated each time are ultrasonically observed by the ultrasonic probe to perform shear wave imaging on the target myocardium, and a color elastic image of the target myocardium is generated; In the second elastic imaging mode: at a plurality of moments satisfying the conditions, ultrasonic observation is performed on the shear waves generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomenon of the heart at the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moments by means of an ultrasonic probe, so as to perform shear wave imaging on the target myocardium and generate a color elastic image of the target myocardium; The color elastic image of the target myocardium is superimposed and displayed on the ultrasound image, and when the generated color elastic image is updated, the displayed color elastic image is also updated accordingly.

2. The method for ultrasonic cardiac imaging according to claim 1, wherein: Also included is a third elastic imaging mode, in which: At multiple moments when the conditions are met, the ultrasound probe is controlled to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moments to generate shear waves multiple times; the shear waves generated each time are ultrasonically observed by the ultrasound probe to perform shear wave imaging of the target myocardium, thereby generating a first color elastic image of the target myocardium; At multiple moments when the conditions are met, ultrasonic observation is performed on the shear waves generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomenon of the heart at the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moments by using an ultrasonic probe to perform shear wave imaging on the target myocardium and generate a second color elastic image of the target myocardium; A color elasticity image of the target myocardium is generated based on the first color elasticity image and the second color elasticity image of the target myocardium.

3. The cardiac ultrasonic imaging method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: Also includes: After determining the target myocardium, selecting an elastic imaging mode that matches the type of the target myocardium from a plurality of elastic imaging modes as the current elastic imaging mode according to the type of the target myocardium; and / or, An elastic imaging mode that matches the slice type of the current ultrasound image is selected from a plurality of elastic imaging modes according to the slice type recognition result as the current elastic imaging mode.

4. The method for ultrasonic cardiac imaging according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The step of judging whether the currently displayed ultrasound image meets the requirements according to the section type recognition result includes: judging whether the currently displayed ultrasound image is of the first section type according to the section type recognition result, and if so, the image meets the requirements; After performing elastic imaging based on the current elastic imaging mode when the ultrasound image is of the first section type, the second section type to be scanned next is determined based on the target myocardium, and the user is prompted to move or rotate the ultrasound probe; as the ultrasound probe moves, when the displayed ultrasound image is identified as the second section type based on the section type recognition model, the user is prompted to stop the movement of the ultrasound probe; and elastic imaging is performed based on the current elastic imaging mode when the ultrasound image is of the second section type.

5. The cardiac ultrasonic imaging method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The step of determining the target myocardium comprises: Displaying a section schematic diagram corresponding to the section type of the ultrasound image in the first region according to the section type recognition result, and marking the myocardium corresponding to the section type on the section schematic diagram; In response to an instruction to select a myocardium marked on the schematic cross-sectional view, the selected myocardium is determined as a target myocardium.

6. The method for ultrasonic cardiac imaging according to claim 5, wherein: In the first elastic imaging mode: the triggering position of the shear wave is also marked on the cut-plane diagram; in the second elastic imaging mode: the mechanism and / or position of the shear wave generated by the spontaneous physiological phenomenon of the heart is also marked on the cut-plane diagram.

7. The cardiac ultrasonic imaging method according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The multiple moments satisfying the conditions include: a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac diastole and a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac systole; or a mitral valve closure moment and aorta closure moment.

8. A method for ultrasonic imaging of the heart, characterized in that: include: Performing a real-time ultrasonic scan on a target tissue including a heart by using an ultrasonic probe to obtain an ultrasonic image of the heart, and displaying the ultrasonic image in real time in the first area; Identify the section type of the displayed ultrasound image based on a preset section type identification model to obtain a section type identification result, and display the section type identification result in the first area; Determining whether the currently displayed ultrasound image is of the first section type according to the section type recognition result, and if so, identifying the myocardium corresponding to the section type of the ultrasound image contained in the currently displayed ultrasound image based on a preset myocardial recognition model, and marking and displaying the shape and position of the identified myocardium in the currently displayed ultrasound image by superimposing a contour shape mark; As the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated, the position of the identified myocardium is tracked, and the contour shape mark superimposed on the ultrasound image is updated based on the position tracking result; Displaying a first section schematic diagram corresponding to a first section type in the first region, and marking the myocardium corresponding to the first section type on the first section schematic diagram; In response to a selection instruction for the myocardium marked on the first section schematic diagram, determining a target myocardium; In the case where the ultrasound image is of the first section type: obtaining the real-time cardiac phase of the heart, controlling the ultrasound probe to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding time to generate shear waves multiple times, and the corresponding time is the time corresponding to multiple cardiac phases that meet the conditions in each cardiac cycle; Determine a second section type to be scanned next based on the target myocardium, and prompt the user to move or rotate the ultrasound probe; as the ultrasound probe moves, when the displayed ultrasound image is identified as the second section type based on the section type recognition model, prompt the user to stop moving the ultrasound probe; In the case where the ultrasound image is of the second section type: identifying the target myocardium from the ultrasound image, and tracking the position of the identified target myocardium as the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated; acquiring the real-time cardiac phase of the heart, and controlling the ultrasound probe to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moment to generate shear waves multiple times, wherein the corresponding moment is the moment corresponding to multiple cardiac phases that meet the conditions in each cardiac cycle; Performing ultrasonic observation on the shear wave generated each time by using an ultrasonic probe to perform shear wave imaging on the target myocardium and generate a color elastic image of the target myocardium; The color elastic image of the target myocardium is superimposed and displayed on the ultrasound image, and when the generated color elastic image is updated, the displayed color elastic image is also updated accordingly.

9. The method for ultrasonic cardiac imaging according to claim 8, wherein: The method of acquiring the real-time cardiac phase of the heart includes: acquiring a first type of physiological signal of the heart; the first type of physiological signal includes an electrocardiogram signal and / or a heart sound signal; and obtaining the cardiac phase according to a phase recognition model.

10. The cardiac ultrasonic imaging method according to claim 8 or 9, characterized in that: The plurality of cardiac phases satisfying the conditions include: a cardiac phase corresponding to the end of cardiac diastole and a cardiac phase corresponding to the end of cardiac systole.

11. A method for ultrasonic imaging of the heart, characterized in that: include: Performing a real-time ultrasonic scan on a target tissue including a heart by using an ultrasonic probe to obtain an ultrasonic image of the heart, and displaying the ultrasonic image in real time in the first area; Identify the section type of the displayed ultrasound image based on a preset section type identification model to obtain a section type identification result, and display the section type identification result in the first area; Determine whether the currently displayed ultrasound image meets the requirements according to the section type recognition result; if so, identify each myocardium contained in the currently displayed ultrasound image based on a preset myocardium recognition model and mark it in the ultrasound image; As the ultrasound image displayed in the first area is updated, position tracking of the identified myocardium is performed; Identify the target myocardium; At multiple moments when the conditions are met, according to the real-time position of the target myocardium at the corresponding moments, the ultrasonic probe is controlled to apply acoustic radiation force to the target myocardium to generate shear waves multiple times; Performing ultrasonic observation on the shear wave generated each time by using an ultrasonic probe to perform shear wave imaging on the target myocardium and generate a color elastic image of the target myocardium; The color elastic image of the target myocardium is superimposed and displayed on the ultrasound image, and when the generated color elastic image is updated, the displayed color elastic image is also updated accordingly.

12. The method for ultrasonic cardiac imaging according to claim 11, wherein: Determining the target myocardium includes at least one of the following: Displaying a section schematic diagram corresponding to the section type of the ultrasound image in the first region according to the section type recognition result, and marking the myocardium corresponding to the section type on the section schematic diagram; In response to a selection instruction for a myocardium marked on the cross-sectional schematic diagram, determining the selected myocardium as a target myocardium; In response to an instruction to select a myocardium on the ultrasound image, determining the selected myocardium as a target myocardium; generating and displaying elastic region options, wherein the elastic region options include at least two of an upper region option, a lower region option, a left region option, a right region option, and an all region option; in response to a user's selection instruction for the elastic region option, determining the myocardium associated with the selected elastic region as a target myocardium; The myocardium associated with the upper area option is the myocardium in the upper area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the lower area option is the myocardium in the lower area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the left area option is the myocardium in the left area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, the myocardium associated with the right area option is the myocardium in the right area of ​​the ultrasound image of the current section type, and the myocardium associated with the all area option is the myocardium in all areas of the ultrasound image of the current section type.

13. The cardiac ultrasound imaging method according to claim 11, characterized in that: The multiple moments satisfying the conditions include: a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac diastole and a moment corresponding to the end of cardiac systole.

14. An ultrasonic imaging system, characterized in that: It includes an ultrasound probe, a transceiver control circuit, a processor and a display; The ultrasonic probe is used to transmit ultrasonic waves to the target tissue and receive echo signals of the ultrasonic waves; the transceiver control circuit is used to control the ultrasonic probe to transmit ultrasonic waves and receive echo signals of ultrasonic waves; the processor is used to process the echo signals to generate ultrasonic images; and the display is used to display the ultrasonic images; The processor is further configured to execute the method for ultrasonic imaging of the heart as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 13.

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