A Histogram Analysis of the Pixel Grayscale (Luminous Intensity) of B-Mode Ultrasound Images of the Subcutaneous Layer Predicts the Grade of Leg Edema in Pregnant Women.

The technique most widely used to quantitatively measure leg edema is only a pitting edema method. It has recently become possible to digitize B-mode ultrasound images and accurately quantify their brightness using an image-analysis software program. The purpose of this study was to find new indices of the grade of leg skin, to study whether or not analyses of the subcutaneous layer of leg skin on ultrasound images using image-editing software program can be used to evaluate it and to digitize it.