The present invention relates to a device (2) and a method (100) for determining at least one final two-dimensional image or slice for visualizing an object of interest in a three-dimensional ultrasound volume. The method (100) for determining at least one final two-dimensional image, the method comprises the steps: a) providing (101) a three-dimensional image of a body region of a patient body, wherein an applicator configured for fixating at least one radiation source is inserted into the body region; b) providing (102) an initial direction, in particular by randomly determining the initial direction within the three-dimensional image; c) repeating (103) the following sequence of steps s1) to s4): s1) determining (104), via a processing unit, a set-direction within the three-dimensional image based on the initial direction for the first sequence or based on a probability map determined during a previous sequence; s2) extracting (105), via the processing unit, an image-set of two-dimensional images from the three-dimensional image, such that the two-dimensional images of the image-set are arranged coaxially and subsequently in the set-direction; s3) applying (106), via the processing unit, an applicator pre-trained classification method to each of the two-dimensional images of the image-set resulting in a probability score for each of the two-dimensional images of the image-set indicating a probability of the applicator being depicted, in particular fully depicted, in the respective two-dimensional image of the image-set in a cross-sectional view; and s4) determining (107), via the processing unit, a probability-map representing the probability scores of the two-dimensional images of the image-set with respect to the set-direction; wherein the method comprises the further step: d) determining (108), via a processing unit and after finishing the last sequence, the two-dimensional image associated with the highest probability score, in particular from the image-set determined during the last sequence, as the final two-dimensional image. The invention provides an efficient way to ensure that the ultrasound volume has the required clinical information by providing the necessary scan planes having the object of interest e.g. the applicator (6) in a three-dimensional ultrasound volume.

An ultrasonic detection method and ultrasonic imaging system for a fetal heart. Since after three-dimensional volume data is obtained, at least one point within a fetal heart in the three-dimensional volume data is identified, the spatial position where a fetal heart cross-section is located in the three-dimensional volume data is identified according to the point, and the fetal heart cross-section is then extracted from the three-dimensional volume data according to the identified spatial position, the fetal heart cross-section can be quickly acquired from the three-dimensional volume data. The present invention is simple and easy to use, and is convenient for a doctor to make a diagnosis.

A system and method for acquiring standard ultrasound scan plane views is provided. The method includes acquiring a scan plane by an ultrasound probe positioned at a scan position over a region of interest. The method includes identifying the scan plane as a first standard view. The method includes automatically adjusting a scan acquisition angle until a second standard view is determined. The adjusting the scan acquisition angle includes rotating and/or tilting the scan acquisition angle. The method includes acquiring, by the ultrasound probe positioned at the scan position, an additional scan plane at the adjusted scan acquisition angle until the second standard view is determined. The method includes automatically determining whether the additional scan plane is the second standard view. The method includes presenting the additional scan plane having the second standard view at a display system.

A method and system for detecting the presence or absence of a target or desired object within a three-dimensional (3D) image. The 3D image is processed to extract one or more 3D feature representations, each of which is then dimensionally reduced into one or more two-dimensional (2D) feature representations. An object detection process is then performed on the 2D features map(s) to generate information about at least the presence or absence of an object within the 2D feature representations, and thereby the overall 3D image.

An ultrasound imaging system includes a processor circuit in communication with an ultrasound transducer configured to receive three-dimensional ultrasound data of an anatomy, and generate a target image corresponding to a target image plane of the anatomy, and a plurality of adjacent images corresponding to image planes adjacent to the target image plane along a simulated motion path. The processor circuit is further configured to display the target image, receive a user input representative of a direction of motion along the simulated motion path, and display an adjacent image of the plurality of adjacent images corresponding to the direction of motion. Accordingly, the user can observe the target image in its spatial context by scanning through the target image and one or more adjacent images on the display as if the ultrasound transducer were being scanned along the simulated motion path.

A system and method for acquiring standard ultrasound scan plane views is provided. The method includes acquiring a scan plane by an ultrasound probe positioned at a scan position over a region of interest. The method includes identifying the scan plane as a first standard view. The method includes automatically adjusting a scan acquisition angle until a second standard view is determined. The adjusting the scan acquisition angle includes rotating and/or tilting the scan acquisition angle. The method includes acquiring, by the ultrasound probe positioned at the scan position, an additional scan plane at the adjusted scan acquisition angle until the second standard view is determined. The method includes automatically determining whether the additional scan plane is the second standard view. The method includes presenting the additional scan plane having the second standard view at a display system.

Provided are a medical image displaying apparatus and a medical image displaying method for registering an ultrasound image with a previously obtained medical image and outputting a result of the registration, the medical image displaying method including: transmitting ultrasound signals to an object and receiving ultrasound echo signals from the object via an ultrasound probe of the medical image displaying apparatus; obtaining a first ultrasound image based on the ultrasound echo signals; performing image registration between the first ultrasound image and a first medical image that is previously obtained; obtaining a second ultrasound image of the object via the ultrasound probe; obtaining a second medical image by transforming the first medical image to correspond to the second ultrasound image; and displaying the second medical image together with the second ultrasound image.

The invention provides a method for determining a global confidence index for a 2D ultrasound image extracted from a 3D ultrasound volume, wherein the global confidence index indicates the suitability of the 2D ultrasound image for medical measure-ments. The method comprises obtaining a 3D ultrasound volume of a subject and extracting a set of at least one 2D ultrasound image from the 3D ultrasound volume. A set of geometrical indicators are then obtained with a first neural network, wherein each geometrical indicator indicates geometrical features of the anatomy of the subject. The set of 2D ultrasound images are then processed with a second neural network, wherein the output of the second neural network is a set of anatomical indicators and wherein the anatomical indicators indicate at least the presence of anatomical landmarks. A global confidence index is then determined for each one of the set of 2D ultrasound images based on the geometrical indicators and the anatomical indicators.

An ultrasound imaging system may include a view recognition processor. The view recognition processor may determine when a specific view has been acquired by the ultrasound imaging system. A signal indicating the specific view has been acquired may be provided to an optimization state controller included in the ultrasound imaging system. Based on the signal, the optimization state controller may determine imaging settings optimized for the specific view. The optimized imaging settings may be provided to other components of the ultrasound imaging system to acquire or process the ultrasound image of the specific view with the optimized imaging settings.

An image interpretation support apparatus includes: an acquisition unit that acquires a plurality of projection images obtained by tomosynthesis imaging in which a radiation is irradiated to a breast from different irradiation angles by a radiation source and a projection image is captured at each irradiation angle by a radiation detector; a first generation unit that generates a plurality of tomographic images on each of a plurality of tomographic planes of the breast from the plurality of projection images; a second generation unit that generates a synthetic two-dimensional image from a plurality of images among the plurality of projection images and the plurality of tomographic images; a detection unit that detects an object of interest candidate region estimated to include an object of interest from the synthetic two-dimensional image; and a determination unit that determines whether or not the object of interest is included in the object of interest candidate region on the basis of the plurality of tomographic images.