High-Speed Medical Imaging in 3D Ultrasound Computer Tomography (original) (raw)

2016, IEEE Transactions on Parallel and Distributed Systems

Despite the ancient discovery of the basic physical phenomenon underlying opt acoustic imaging and tomography [1], the lack of suitable laser sources, ultrasound detection technology, data acquisition, and processing capacities has long hindered the realization of efficient imaging devices. In fact, the first highquality images from living animals were obtained about a decade ago (Figure 1), which was followed by an exponential growth of technical developments in instrumentation, algorithms, and biomedical applications surrounding this fascinating field. The ability of opt acoustics to probe optical contrast along a wide domain of penetration scales while maintaining excellent spatiotemporal resolution representative of ultrasound imaging, as shown in Figure 2, is unparalleled among the other optical imaging modalities A historical time line of the development of opt acoustic imaging technology. (Images in the time line reprinted courtesy of AAAS, AAPM, the IEEE, Nobel Media AB, NPG, RSNA, and the Welcome Library for the History and Understanding of Medicine.) The penetration depth and resolution of modern photonic imaging techniques. For living tissues, the methods at the left of the graph are primarily limited by light scattering, whereas the methods to the right are primarily limited by light attenuation in tissue, a parameter that depends on both absorption and scattering, or by ultrasound attenuation. Note that optical projection tomography (OPT) and selective plane illumination microscopy (SPIM) can operate deeper than the range shown in naturally transparent or chemically cleared samples. (2P/MP: two-photon/ multiphoton microscopy; DOT: diffuse optical tomography; FMT: fluorescence molecular tomography; MFT: macroscopic fluorescence tomography.) Small animal imaging, further providing high sensitivity and spatial resolution, portability, and real-time operation capacity.