Systems and methods for nonlinear elastography

摘要

Nonlinear elastography systems and methods are provided. The elastography system includes a data acquisition module, such as an imaging device, and associated system control circuitry. The data acquisition module is configured to acquire various data, such as displacement and/or force data, from a material. A nonlinear transfer function is applied to the acquired data to generate information about the material's stiffness. In one implementation, a map representative of the material's stiffness is generated.

主权项

1. A method for elastography, the method comprising:
applying a displacement to a surface of a volume of a tissue; measuring a resulting reactive force on the surface or within the volume of the tissue; generating a nonlinear transfer function based on a relationship between the applied displacement and measured resulting reactive force, wherein the nonlinear transfer function has a slope that decreases between a relatively low value of strain and a higher value of strain; and applying the nonlinear transfer function to a map indicative of strain within the volume of the tissue to generate a modulus map providing information about regions of different stiffness within the volume of the tissue.