Vessel recovery using ultrasound localisation microscopy: An in silico comparative study between minimum variance and delay-and-sum beamformers.

The use of particle localisation and tracking algorithms on Contrast Enhanced Ultrasound (CEUS) or other ultrasound mode image data containing sparse microbubble (MB) populations, can produce super-resolved vascularization maps. Typically such data stem from conventional delay and sum (DAS) beamforming that is used widely in ultrasound imaging modes. Recently, adaptive beamforming has shown significant improvement in spatial resolution, but its value to super-resolution image analysis approaches is not fully understood.

Greek medical professionals approaches and understanding of health literacy: a qualitative study.

Background: Health literacy holds significant importance for medical professionals, as it is widely acknowledged as a key element in enhancing health promotion and overall well-being. The primary objective of this study is to explore Greek physicians' comprehension of health literacy, the significance they attribute to it, their strategies for addressing patients with low health literacy, and the potential barriers they face while striving to enhance a patient's health literacy. In this context, we examine the communication methods employed by physicians as an integral part of their approach to improving a patient's health literacy.

Super-Resolution Contrast-Enhanced Ultrasound Methodology for the Identification of In Vivo Vascular Dynamics in 2D.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to provide an ultrasound-based super-resolution methodology that can be implemented using clinical 2-dimensional ultrasound equipment and standard contrast-enhanced ultrasound modes. In addition, the aim is to achieve this for true-to-life patient imaging conditions, including realistic examination times of a few minutes and adequate image penetration depths that can be used to scan entire organs without sacrificing current super-resolution ultrasound imaging performance.

Methods: Standard contrast-enhanced ultrasound was used along with bolus or infusion injections of SonoVue (Bracco, Geneva, Switzerland) microbubble (MB) suspensions.

Resolving Ultrasound Contrast Microbubbles Using Minimum Variance Beamforming.

Minimum Variance (MV) beamforming is known to improve the lateral resolution of ultrasound images and enhance the separation of isolated point scatterers. This paper aims to evaluate the adaptive beamformer's performance with flowing microbubbles (MBs) which are relevant to super-resolution ultrasound imaging. Simulations using point scatterer data from single emissions were complemented by an experimental investigation performed using a capillary tube phantom and the Synthetic Aperture Real-time Ultrasound System (SARUS).

Super-Resolution Axial Localization of Ultrasound Scatter Using Multi-Focal Imaging.

Objective: This paper aims to develop a method for achieving micrometre axial scatterer localization for medical ultrasound, surpassing the inherent, pulse length dependence limiting ultrasound imaging.

Methods: The method, directly translated from cellular microscopy, is based on multi-focal imaging and the simple, aberration-dependent, image sharpness metric of a single point scatterer. The localization of a point scatterer relies on the generation of multiple overlapping sharpness curves, created by deploying three foci during receive processing, and by assessing the sharpness values after each acquisition as a function of depth.

Experimental performance assessment of the sub-band minimum variance beamformer for ultrasound imaging.

Recent progress in adaptive beamforming techniques for medical ultrasound has shown that current resolution limits can be surpassed. One method of obtaining improved lateral resolution is the Minimum Variance (MV) beamformer. The frequency domain implementation of this method effectively divides the broadband ultrasound signals into sub-bands (MVS) to conform with the narrow-band assumption of the original MV theory.

High resolution depth-resolved imaging from multi-focal images for medical ultrasound.

An ultrasound imaging technique providing sub-diffraction limit axial resolution for point sources is proposed. It is based on simultaneously acquired multi-focal images of the same object, and on the image metric of sharpness. The sharpness is extracted by image data and presents higher values for in-focus images.