Basic Physics & Instrument

of Diagnostic Ultrasound

ร.ศ. พ.ญ. ปานฤทัย ตรี นวรั ตน์

ภาควิชารั งสีวทิ ยา
คณะแพทยศาสตร์ จุฬาลงกรณ์ มหาวิทยาลัย
 Objective
1. Machine
2. Transducer
3. Mode of ultrasound display
4. Orientation
5. Terminology
6. Knobology
7. Artifacts
 Ultrasound Machine
Image display

Transducer

Control panel
 Objective
• Machine
• Transducer
• Mode of ultrasound display
• Orientation
• Terminology
• Knobology
• Artifacts
 Transducer

• Transducer has two main functions

1. Produce an ultrasound pulse

2. Receive echoes and generate sonogram

Caution: Transducer is delicate and expensive

 Transducer function :
To produce an ultrasound pulse
• Crystal elements
– placing in arrays
 Array transducer

• Types of array transducer

– Linear
– Curved / Convex
– Sector
– Annular
– Tightly curved

Piezo-electric crystal (PZT) (Array = ขบวน)

Curved or convex
transducer

6C2 Transducer
8C4 frequency
 Transducer frequency

• For diagnostic ultrasound : 1-15 MHz

• US for adult abdomen : 3.5 MHz

“High frequency,
High resolution
Low penetration”
 Position of structure is located according to
the time between sending and receiving
sound, calculated by sound velocity.

Sound velocity 1540 m/s

Structure 1 cm deep 
2 cm (0.02m) sound distance 
0.02 / 1540 = 0.000012987 ~ 0.013 ms
• Loss of sound amplitude as US goes deeper
• Attenuation of US

1. Reflection การสะท้ อน
2. Scattering การกระจาย
3. Absorption การดูดกลืน
4. Refraction การหักเห
Focal zone
5. Beam การบานออกของลาเสียง
divergence

(Attenuation = การลดน้ อยลง)

 Objective
• Machine
• Transducer
• Mode of ultrasound display
• Orientation
• Terminology
• Knobology
• Artifacts
 Modes of Ultrasound Display
Echoes can be presented in several different
formats (or modes)

A-mode : Amplitude
B-mode : Brightness
C-mode : Color
D-mode : Doppler
M-mode : Motion
Mode = รู ปแบบ, วิธีปฏิบตั ิ
 Modes of Ultrasound Display
Echoes can be presented in several different
formats (or modes)

A-mode : Amplitude
B-mode : Brightness
C-mode : Color
D-mode : Doppler Rt heatic lobe

M-mode : Motion
 Modes of Ultrasound Display
Echoes can be presented in several different
formats (or modes)

A-mode : Amplitude
B-mode : Brightness
C-mode : Color
D-mode : Doppler
M-mode : Motion Flow in paraumbilical vein out of the liver
 Modes of Ultrasound Display
Echoes can be presented in several different
formats (or modes)

A-mode : Amplitude
B-mode : Brightness
C-mode : Color
D-mode : Doppler
Portal venous waveform, vel 11cm/s
M-mode : Motion
 Modes of Ultrasound Display
Echoes can be presented in several different
formats (or modes)

A-mode : Amplitude
B-mode : Brightness
C-mode : Color
D-mode : Doppler
M-mode : Motion Movement of diaphragm
 Objective
• Machine
• Transducer
• Mode of ultrasound display
• Orientation
• Terminology
• Knobology
• Artifacts
 Orientation
of transducer Axial
plane
Rt LT
 Orientation
Sagittal
of transducer plane
Sup Inf
 Objective
• Machine
• Transducer
• Mode of ultrasound display
• Orientation
• Terminology
• Knobology
• Artifacts
 Terminology

• X-ray, CT Density
• MRI Signal intensity

• US Echogenicity
– Echo-free / anechoic
– Low / hypo echogenicity
– Medium / intermediate echogenicity
– High / hyper echogenicity
 Echofree / Anechoic

– Gallbladder
– Urinary bladder
– CSF
– Simple effusion
– Ascites
– Cyst
 Low / hypo-echogenicity

– Complicated cyst
– Abscess
– Mass
– Lymph node
Medium / intermediate echogenicity

Rt hepatic lobe
– Parenchyma of viscera
– Tumor

Spleen

LK

Adrenal mass
 High / hyper-echogenicity

– Diaphragm-lung
interface
– Hemangioma
– Fatty liver
– Nephrocalcinosis
 Objective
• Machine
• Transducer
• Mode of ultrasound display
• Orientation
• Terminology
• Knobology
• Artifacts
 Adjust “field of view” or “depth”
• Large FOV • Small FOV

13 9
 Adjust “field of view” or “depth”

• For each display -- Fixed numbers of pixels

Small FOV  increased numbers of pixels/ cm2

Large FOV  decreased numbers of pixels /cm2

• Small FOV  Improve spatial resolution

(Resolution = ความแน่ วแน่ ความชัดเจน)

Adjust “gain” and “time gain control”
Adjust “focal zone”
 Objective
• Machine
• Transducer
• Mode of ultrasound display
• Orientation
• Terminology
• Knobology
• Artifacts
 Acoustic
Artifacts

Equipment
Electronic
Setting
Artifacts
Artifacts
Attenuation Artifacts Depth of Origin Artifacts
• Shadowing • Reverberation
• Enhancement • Ring down
• Comet tail

Beam Dimension Artifacts Beam Path Artifacts

•Beamwidth •Refraction
•Slice thickness •Mirror
• Severe attenuation of sound
at the interface of
high acoustic impedance mismatch

Normal
Soft Tissue Soft Tissue
Tissue

Bone or Fibrous Scar

Gas
Calcium Tissue
Gas in Stomach Shadowing Artifact

Gallstone
 Shadowing Artifact
Fibrous Scar
Tissue in Right
Breast
• Fluid-filled structures generally attenuate
the sound to a much lesser than solid
organs, resulting an area of increased
brightness in the display

• One of the criteria for classifying

a lesion as being cystic
 Enhancement Artifact
Liver Cyst
 Liver
Abscess
 Slice thickness artifact
Beamwidth artifact
• The assumption that all echoes detected by
the transducer have arisen from the centre of
the beam is incorrect
• Most obvious when echo are displayed in an
echo-free area
Slice thickness artifact

Turbid urine in cystitis

Slice Thickness Artifact

Bile sludge
in
gallbladder
• Repeated reflections of echo between two interfaces

Pleura-lung
interface

Transducer on chest wall

Reverberation arising from
subcutaneous tissue and
displayed in the bladder
Reverberation arising from Reverberation arising from
subcutaneous tissue, subcutaneous tissue,
displayed in the liver displayed in the gallbladder
• Short range reverberation artifact
• Consisting of high amplitude echoes, tapering
and reducing in brightness with depth

Comet tail artifact

behind a metal wire
• Result of resonance,
Liver
when ultrasound beam Spleen
strikes air bubbles
• Appear as sharply
defined streaks, aligned
with the axis of the
beam
• Commonly seen arising
from bowel gas, air in
the biliary tree
Double image of aorta caused by refraction
(lens effect) in the rectus abdominis muscles
http://www.sonoworld.com
• Occur when there is a specular reflector
within the scan plane, which acts as the
mirror
 Useful
Acoustic
Artifacts

Shadowing artifact
Enhancement
artifact
Comet tail artifact
 Awareness
Artifacts

 Beamwidth artifact
 Slice thickness artifact
 Reverberation artifact
 Mirror artifact
 Refraction artifact
 Conclusion
• Machine Transducer, control panel, display
• Transducer Function, type, frequency
• Mode of ultrasound display A, B, C, D, M modes
• Orientation Right-left, Superior-inferior
• Terminology Echogenicity
• Knobology Depth, focus, gain
• Artifacts Useful artifacts, awareness artifacts
 ขอขอบคุณ
• อาจารย์แพทย์หญิง ณัฐพร ตัน่ เผ่าพงษ์
• อาจารย์แพทย์หญิง น ้าผึ ้ง นาการุณอรุณโรจน์
• Roger Gent, Australia