In one embodiment a system includes a ultrasound probe to capture 2D ultrasonic images of a body part of a living subject, a process to generate a 3D anatomical map of the body part, the 3D anatomical map and the 2D ultrasonic images being registered with a 3D coordinate space, add a 3D indication of an anatomical structure to the 3D anatomical map, render to a display the 3D anatomical map including the 3D indication of the anatomical structure, and render to the display a given one of the 2D ultrasonic images with a 2D indication of the anatomical structure on the given 2D ultrasonic image responsively to the 3D indication of the anatomical structure.

The present disclosure describes ultrasound imaging systems and methods, which may enable the automatic identification of an image plane in a pre-operative volume corresponding to a real-time image of a moving region of interest. An example method includes receiving real-time ultrasound image data from a probe associated with a position-tracking sensor, generating real-time images based on the real-time ultrasound data and deriving a motion model from the real-time ultrasound image data. The method may further include automatically identifying an image plane in a pre-operative data set to correspond to the real-time ultrasound image by correcting for motion-induced misalignment between the real-time data and the pre-operative data.

Retinal diseases, such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), are the leading cause of blindness in the elderly population. Since no known cures are currently present, it is crucial to diagnose the condition in its early stages so that disease progression is monitored. Systems and methods for detecting and mapping the mechanical elasticity of retinal layers in the posterior eye are disclosed herein. A system including confocal shear wave acoustic radiation force optical coherence elastography (SW-ARF-OCE) is provided, wherein an ultrasound transducer and an optical scan head are co-aligned to facilitate in-vivo study of the retina. In addition, an automatic segmentation algorithm is used to isolate tissue layers and analyze the shear wave propagation within the retinal tissue to estimate mechanical stress on the retina and detect early stages of retinal diseases based on the estimated mechanical stress.

An ultrasound device (10) includes a probe (12) including a tube (14) sized for insertion into a patient and an ultrasound transducer (18) disposed at a distal end (16) of the tube. A camera (20) is mounted at the distal end of the tube in a fixed spatial relationship to the ultrasound transducer. At least one electronic processor (28) is programmed to: control the ultrasound transducer and the camera to acquire ultrasound images (19) and camera images (21) respectively while the ultrasound transducer is disposed in vivo inside the patient; and construct a keyframe (36) representative of an in vivo position of the ultrasound transducer including at least ultrasound image features (38) extracted from at least one of the ultrasound images acquired at the in vivo position of the ultrasound transducer and camera image features (40) extracted from one of the camera images acquired at the in vivo position of the ultrasound transducer.

An intraoperative ultrasound imaging system and method capable of using ultrasound imaging to safely place a surgical access instrument (e.g. guide wire, dilator, cannula, etc.) through a tissue (e.g., muscle, fat, brain, liver, lung, etc.) without damaging nearby neurovascular structure is described herein. The intraoperative ultrasound system includes an ultrasound probe assembly configured for emitting and receiving ultrasound waves and a computer system including a processor and a display unit. Once the probe is in position, ultrasound imaging is performed wherein the computer receives RF data from the probe and causes a B-mode image of the visible anatomical structures (e.g. muscle, bone, etc.) to be displayed on the display unit.

A medical system includes an ultrasound probe for insertion into an organ of a body and a processor. The ultrasound probe includes (i) a two-dimensional (2D) ultrasound transducer array, and (ii) a sensor configured to output signals indicative of a position, direction and orientation of the 2D ultrasound transducer array inside the organ. The processor is configured to (a) using the signals output by the sensor, register multiple ultrasound images of a tissue region, acquired over a given time duration by the 2D ultrasound transducer array, with one another, and (b) generate a map of the tissue region indicative of respective amounts of motion of tissue locations in the tissue region.

A medical system includes an ultrasound probe and a processor. The ultrasound probe is configured for insertion into an organ of a body and includes (i) a two-dimensional (2D) ultrasound transducer array, and (ii) a sensor configured to output signals indicative of a position and orientation of the 2D ultrasound transducer array inside the organ. The processor is configured to (a) using the signals output by the sensor, register multiple ultrasound image sections, acquired by the 2D ultrasound transducer array, with one another, (b) produce a union of the multiple registered ultrasound image sections, to form a rendering of at least a portion of the organ, and (c) present the rendering to a user.

A system for delivering drugs or other molecules to the brain comprises an ultrasound imaging transducer configured to image structures such as the circle of Willis within a patient's head by way of a low attenuation acoustic window. The system includes a processor configured to register the ultrasound images to previously obtained images which also include the structures. The system includes ultrasound transducer elements operable to deliver ultrasound energy to a target region to cause the blood brain barrier to open. The system may include a drug delivery system that may be operated to deliver a drug to the patient in coordination with opening the blood brain barrier. Coordinates of the target region relative to the ultrasound imaging transducer are determined using registration information.

An image guided surgical system includes a marker attachable to and removable from an elongated surgical tool having a shaft, and at least one camera, and an image processing system in communication with the camera configured to obtain an image of the surgical tool. The image processing system is configured to operate in a calibration mode to generate a template and display the template on a display device and to receive a user input, after the image of the surgical tool is aligned to the template, to adjust a length of the template to substantially match a length of the surgical tool. A storage device in communication with the image processing system is included to store calibration information that associates a position of the marker with a position of the tip of the shaft of the surgical tool based on the adjusted length of the template.

An ultrasound diagnostic apparatus includes: a display unit that displays an acoustic wave image; an operation unit for a user to perform an input operation; a measurement item designation receiving unit that receives designation of a measurement item relevant to a measurement target; a detection measurement algorithm setting unit that sets a detection measurement algorithm based on the measurement item; a position designation receiving unit that receives designation of a position of a measurement target on the acoustic wave image; a measurement unit that detects the measurement target from the acoustic wave image based on the position of the measurement target and the detection measurement algorithm, measures the measurement target, calculates a measurement candidate, and displays the measurement candidate on the display unit; and a measurement candidate designation receiving unit that receives designation of the measurement candidate in a case where a plurality of measurement candidates are displayed.