Elastography Device High Repetition Rate Liver Stiffness
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional elastography methods fail to accurately capture the variability of liver stiffness over time due to low measurement repetition rates, leading to significant variability and potential misdiagnosis.
Innovation Solution
An elastography device and method that acquire mechanical property measurements at a high repetition rate (at least 4 measurements per second) for a duration of at least 1 second, allowing for the observation of stiffness variations over short periods, such as a cardiac cycle, using a VCTE device with a low frequency vibrator and ultrasound transducer to deliver transient mechanical pulses and track elastic wave propagation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If conventional elastography methods are used with low measurement repetition rates, then device complexity is reduced and ease of operation is maintained, but measurement precision and reliability of liver stiffness assessment deteriorate due to inability to capture temporal variations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements periodic mechanical pulses delivered by a vibrator at controlled intervals, with ultrasound sequences triggered at regular time points between pulses. This periodic acquisition strategy enables systematic sampling of liver stiffness at multiple time points (e.g., 4 measurements per second) over a duration of at least 1 second, capturing temporal variations while maintaining a structured, manageable measurement protocol that does not excessively increase operational complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent maintains continuous measurement acquisition over an extended duration (at least 1 second) with multiple measurements per second, ensuring uninterrupted sampling of liver stiffness temporal variations. This continuous action captures the dynamic behavior of liver tissue throughout the cardiac cycle and respiratory phases, providing a complete temporal profile without gaps that would compromise measurement precision
2Reliability
If measurement duration is extended to capture temporal variations, then reliability of liver stiffness assessment improves, but loss of time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent leverages the subject's own physiological rhythms (cardiac cycle and respiratory phases) as natural temporal markers for measurement acquisition. By synchronizing measurements with these inherent biological cycles, the system automatically captures relevant temporal variations without requiring external timing devices or complex coordination, thereby improving reliability while minimizing the time investment required from the operator and subject
Solution Approach 2:
The patent dynamically adjusts the repetition rate of measurements (e.g., 4 measurements per second) and the total acquisition duration (at least 1 second) to optimize the balance between capturing sufficient temporal variations and minimizing examination time. This parameter optimization ensures that measurements are acquired at a rate sufficient to capture cardiac and respiratory cycles without unnecessarily extending the examination duration
3Measurement precision
If high repetition rate measurements are acquired, then measurement precision and detection of cardiovascular pathologies improve, but quantity of data processed increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts and analyzes only the essential temporal characteristics from the acquired data, such as variations in liver stiffness during the cardiac cycle and respiratory phases. By focusing on these specific temporal patterns rather than processing every raw measurement point in detail, the system maintains high measurement precision for detecting cardiovascular pathologies while reducing the computational burden through selective extraction of clinically relevant features
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This approach provides a more precise and accurate representation of liver stiffness variations over time, improving diagnostic accuracy by capturing cardiac cycle-induced changes, reducing noise, and enhancing the detection of cardiovascular pathologies.
Implementation Method 1
a low frequency vibrator arranged to move the protruding part of the probe, wherein, for determining each of the plurality of measurements, the electronic unit is configured to control the low frequency vibrator to deliver to the body a transient, low frequency mechanical pulse
Implementation Method 2
the mechanical pulse generates both a shear wave and of a compression wave... the elastic waves mentioned above combine a shear wave and a compression wave
Implementation Method 3
control a sequence of ultrasound pulses to be emitted by the ultrasound transducer, and acquire echo signals received in response by the ultrasound transducer
Implementation Method 4
acquire echo signals received in response by the ultrasound transducer to track how a low frequency elastic wave induced by the mechanical pulse propagates through the region of the body
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4
AI summary
The present invention relates to an elastography device to obtain a signal representative of variations of a mechanical property of a region of a body of a subject with time, the elastography device comprising an electronic unit adapted to determine, at a repetition rate of at least 4 measurements per second and for a duration of at least 1 second, measurements of the mechanical property, each measurement of the mechanical property being associated with a respective time, wherein the signal representative of the variations of the mechanical property with time comprises a plurality of the measurements of the mechanical property determined.