Airborne Ultrasound Surface Motion Camera: Application to Transfer Admittance Chest Imaging

Area of Science:

• Pulmonary Medicine
• Biomedical Engineering
• Medical Imaging

Background:

• Lung mechanics exhibit heterogeneity in respiratory diseases, posing diagnostic challenges.
• Current methods for mapping lung heterogeneity often involve ionizing radiation and are not bedside-compatible.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and validate an Airborne Ultrasound Surface Motion Camera (AUSMC) for non-ionizing, bedside mapping of respiratory system heterogeneity.
• To assess local transfer admittance as a measure of regional lung mechanics.

Main Methods:

• Utilized an Airborne Ultrasound Surface Motion Camera (AUSMC) to measure local transfer admittance.
• Applied an oscillatory pressure source at the mouth to probe respiratory system dynamics.
• Compared admittance maps between a COPD patient and a healthy subject, and between groups of COPD patients and healthy controls.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated proof-of-concept with localized admittance maps showing reduced transfer admittance in a COPD patient versus a healthy subject.
• Confirmed lower regional transfer admittance and impedance in 6 COPD patients compared to 6 healthy subjects.

Conclusions:

• AUSMC offers a non-ionizing, bedside method for spatially mapping lung mechanics heterogeneity.
• Reduced local transfer admittance is a potential indicator of disease severity in conditions like COPD.