Farajpour Ali, Ingman Wendy V
Adelaide Medical School, University of Adelaide, The Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Woodville South, Adelaide, SA 5011, Australia.
Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA 5006, Australia.
Bioengineering (Basel). 2024 Sep 30;11(10):991. doi: 10.3390/bioengineering11100991.
Changes in biomechanical properties such as elasticity modulus, viscosity, and poroelastic features are linked to the health status of biological tissues. Ultrasound elastography is a non-invasive imaging tool that quantitatively maps these biomechanical characteristics for diagnostic and treatment monitoring purposes. Mathematical models are essential in ultrasound elastography as they convert the raw data obtained from tissue displacement caused by ultrasound waves into the images observed by clinicians. This article reviews the available mathematical frameworks of continuum mechanics for extracting the biomechanical characteristics of biological tissues in ultrasound elastography. Continuum-mechanics-based approaches such as classical viscoelasticity, elasticity, and poroelasticity models, as well as nonlocal continuum-based models, are described. The accuracy of ultrasound elastography can be increased with the recent advancements in continuum modelling techniques including hyperelasticity, biphasic theory, nonlocal viscoelasticity, inversion-based elasticity, and incorporating scale effects. However, the time taken to convert the data into clinical images increases with more complex models, and this is a major challenge for expanding the clinical utility of ultrasound elastography. As we strive to provide the most accurate imaging for patients, further research is needed to refine mathematical models for incorporation into the clinical workflow.
生物力学特性的变化，如弹性模量、粘度和多孔弹性特征，与生物组织的健康状况相关。超声弹性成像技术是一种非侵入性成像工具，用于定量绘制这些生物力学特征，以进行诊断和治疗监测。数学模型在超声弹性成像中至关重要，因为它们将由超声波引起的组织位移所获得的原始数据转换为临床医生所观察到的图像。本文综述了用于提取超声弹性成像中生物组织生物力学特征的连续介质力学的现有数学框架。描述了基于连续介质力学的方法，如经典粘弹性、弹性和多孔弹性模型，以及基于非局部连续介质的模型。随着连续介质建模技术的最新进展，包括超弹性、两相理论、非局部粘弹性、基于反演的弹性以及纳入尺度效应，超声弹性成像的准确性可以得到提高。然而，随着模型变得更加复杂，将数据转换为临床图像所需的时间会增加，这是扩大超声弹性成像临床应用的一个重大挑战。在我们努力为患者提供最准确成像的过程中，需要进一步研究以完善数学模型，以便将其纳入临床工作流程。
