Yun Pang

Comparative Study of Automated Breast 3-D Ultrasound and Handheld B-Mode Ultrasound for Differentiation of Benign and Malignant Breast Masses

The automated breast volume scanner (ABVS) represents a new technology for diagnosing breast masses. In this study, a total of 219 breast masses in 175 patients underwent both conventional handheld B-mode ultrasound (HHUS) and ABVS examinations, and the differences in the diagnostic values of the two modalities for benign and malignant breast masses were compared with the final pathologic findings. In addition, the diagnostic accuracy for breast masses with features including retraction phenomenon and hyperechoic rim in the coronal plane of the ABVS was evaluated. There were no differences between the ABVS and HHUS in terms of sensitivity (92.5% vs. 88.0%), specificity (86.2% vs. 87.5%), accuracy (88.1% vs. 87.2%), false-positive rate (13.8% vs. 12.5%), false-negative rate (11.8% vs. 7.5%), positive predictive value (74.7% vs. 75.6%) and negative predictive value (96.3% vs. 94.3%) (p > 0.05 for all). However, there were significant differences between the malignant and benign masses with respect to retraction phenomenon and hyperechoic rim in the coronal plane of the ABVS. For retraction phenomenon, both the specificity and positive predictive value of a malignant diagnosis reached 100%, and the accuracy and false-positive rate were 96.8% and 0, respectively; for the hyperechoic rim, the specificity, negative predictive value and accuracy of a benign diagnosis were 92.8%, 95.3% and 95.9%, respectively. Overall, ABVS is a promising modality for the clinical diagnosis of breast masses with retraction phenomenon and hyperechoic rim in the coronal plane, although the ABVS and HHUS do not differ in diagnostic accuracy for the differentiation of malignant or benign breast masses.

The diagnostic value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in differentiating small renal carcinoma and angiomyolipoma

The aim of this study was to explore the value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) in differentiating small renal masses. A total of 102 small renal masses (≤ 3 cm) in 99 patients were examined using conventional ultrasound (CUS) and CEUS, and the findings were reviewed and evaluated in comparison to pathology. Significant differences between renal cell carcinomas (RCCs) and angiomyolipomas (AMLs) were noted in terms of the orientation and echogenicity on CUS (p < 0.05 for both), but the location, shape, margins, homogeneity, and blood flow signals of RCCs on color Doppler flow imaging (CDFI) were similar to those of AMLs (p > 0.05 for all). On CEUS, however, the enhancement intensity, washout in the late phase, and perilesional rim-like enhancement differed significantly for RCCs and AMLs (p = 0.000 for all). Significant differences between CEUS and CUS in terms of sensitivity (88.9% vs. 55.6%), the negative predictive value (68.0% vs. 29.5%), the false negative rate (9.9% vs. 44.5%), and accuracy (88.3% vs. 58.9%) were noted (p < 0.05 for all). CEUS, with its unique features, has value in diagnosing small RCCs and AMLs and outperforms CUS in differentiation of small RCCs and AMLs.

Diagnostic Value of an Automated Breast Volume Scanner for Abdominal Hernias

This study explored the diagnostic values of an automated breast volume scanner (ABVS) for abdominal external hernias.

Automated Volume Scanner System Ultrasonography for Evaluation of Varicose Veins of the Lower Extremities

Objective: To assess the utility of automated volume scanner system (AVSS) ultrasonography in the clinical evaluation of varicose veins of the leg. Methods: Varicose veins of the leg were evaluated using both handheld ultrasonography and AVSS. Morphological features (tortuosity, focal ectasia, thrombosis) and saphenous vein diameter were observed. Results: A total of 69 legs (43 patients) were examined. The overall quality of AVSS images was excellent in all cases. AVSS allowed visualization of the entire length of the great and small saphenous veins. Significantly more cases of tortuosity, focal ectasia and thrombosis were detected using AVSS than handheld ultra -sonography. The size and mean diameter of veins were consistent between the two methodologies. Conclusions: Coronal plane AVSS ultrasonography images were useful for the detection of tortuosity, focal ectasia and thrombosis. AVSS and handheld ultrasonography can be combined to provide both anatomical and functional information, facilitating the planning of surgical treatment of varicose veins.

Is there an extraclinical value of automated breast volume scanner compared with hand-held ultrasound?: A pilot study

Abstract The aim of this study was to investigate the extraclinical value of automated breast volume scanning (ABVS) in the diagnosis of breast tumor compare to hand-handle ultrasound (HHUS). One hundred twenty-four patients with breast tumor were performed HHUS and ABVS before operation. The research focused on whether there were newly found tumors or new findings on the coronal planes by using ABVS compared with HHUS. Then, the classification adjustments of breast imaging reporting and data system (BI-RADS) were made according to new findings on the coronal planes by using ABVS. There are totally 166 breast tumors found in 124 patients by HHUS, while 8 more were observed by ABVS, 4 of which were malignant and the rest were benign. The sensitivity and specificity of ABVS coronal plane findings were 37.0% and 92.5%, respectively. The area under receiver operating characteristic curve was 0.89 before the corrected classification versus 0.93 after the corrected classification, there were no significant differences (P > .05). There was no significant extraclinical value in differentiating diagnosis of malignant tumors and benign breast tumors by ABVS comparing to HHUS. However, those minimal lesions missed diagnosis could be found by ABVS with continuously automatic scanning.

Diagnostic Value of Automated 3D Ultrasound for Incisional Hernia

The automated volume scanning system (AVSS) has been applied in breast diseases, but its use in incisional hernias has not been reported. In this study, conventional handheld B-mode ultrasound (HHUS) and AVSS examined a total of 122 hernia defects in 78 patients. The results from two modalities were then compared with surgical findings for the purpose of assessing the diagnostic value of AVSS. Statistics showed that surgeries identified 38 small, 23 medium and 17 large incisional hernias. The results of AVSS completely agreed with surgical findings; however, HHUS misidentified nine large hernias as medium and seven medium hernias as large. AVSS proved to be more accurate than HHUS in measuring the length and width of the hernia. It also outperformed HHUS in both detecting the incisional hernias (91.8% vs. 78.7%, p = 0.00) and determining hernia contents (89.3% vs. 68.0%, p = 0.00). Moreover, the coronal images AVSS obtained clearly displayed the shapes of the hernias, with 46 being regular and 32 irregular. Overall, AVSS can be used as a promising diagnostic modality for incisional hernias.

Identification of Implanted Mesh After Incisional Hernia Repair Using an Automated Breast Volume Scanner

This study aimed to evaluate the utility of an automated breast volume scanner (ABVS) versus handheld ultrasound (US) for identifying implanted mesh after incisional hernia repair.

Intelligent speckle reducing anisotropic diffusion algorithm for automated 3-D ultrasound images

A novel 3-D filtering method is presented for speckle reduction and detail preservation in automated 3-D ultrasound images. First, texture features of an image are analyzed by using the improved quadtree (QT) decomposition. Then, the optimal homogeneous and the obvious heterogeneous regions are selected from QT decomposition results. Finally, diffusion parameters and diffusion process are automatically decided based on the properties of these two selected regions. The computing time needed for 2-D speckle reduction is very short. However, the computing time required for 3-D speckle reduction is often hundreds of times longer than 2-D speckle reduction. This may limit its potential application in practice. Because this new filter can adaptively adjust the time step of iteration, the computation time is reduced effectively. Both synthetic and real 3-D ultrasound images are used to evaluate the proposed filter. It is shown that this filter is superior to other methods in both practicality and efficiency.

A textural features extraction algorithm for abdominal wall hernia mesh detection in automated 3D ultrasound images

A textural feature extraction algorithm was proposed to automatically find candidate objects in the selected volume of interest (VOI) and compute textural features on multiplanar images for classification of the mesh and fascia. Firstly, candidate objects were found out in axial plane (A-plane) and coronal plane (C-plane) images with the preprocessing stage. Secondly, textural features of candidate objects were extracted from the gray level co-occurrence matrix (GLCM). Finally, each feature extractor was evaluated using the criterion of distances between classes. Results demonstrated that the proposed algorithm can effectively detect the mesh and fascia in automated 3D ultrasound images. It can also provide significant textural features in the C-plane to distinguish between the mesh and fascia.

Automated breast volume scanning: a case demonstration of a breast invasive ductal carcinoma

Automated breast volume scan (ABVS) ultrasound is one of the first representatives of automated ultrasound systems which is developed to help identify potential pathologies by acquiring full-field volume of the breast automatically. The system utilizes a high-frequency 14 MHz transducer to automatically sweep over the breast, producing a 15.4 cm × 16.8 cm × 6 cm field of view volume. This technique can image the breast lesions from coronal, sagittal, and transverse planes, providing all the information needed for precise documentation and depiction of the lesion. Furthermore, ABVS provides high-resolution 3D-Ultrasound images of breast lesions, multiplanar correlation facilitates lesion assessment. Especially, the coronal plane provides physicians (especially surgeons) a comprehensive view of the breast from the skin line to chest wall in a series of images. This view has an additional value for surgical planning, and provides a more understandable representation of the breast’s global anatomy and architecture. Additionally, the automated procedure is operator-independent, standardized and time-saving. This helps to make a quick and confident diagnosis. An ABVS ultrasound demonstration of a breast invasive ductal carcinoma is demonstrated as below (Figures 1,2, Video 1,2).