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Applied Sciences
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Signal Processing and Image Analysis Techniques for Lung Ultrasound Imaging
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Signal Processing and Image Analysis Techniques for Lung Ultrasound Imaging

A special issue of Applied Sciences (ISSN 2076-3417). This special issue belongs to the section "Applied Biosciences and Bioengineering".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 December 2019) | Viewed by 33114

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Libertario Demi

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Guest Editor
Department of Information Engineering and Computer Science, University of Trento, 38122 Trento, Italy
Interests: signal processing; image analysis; ultrasound imaging; beam-forming
Dr. Gino Soldati

E-Mail
Guest Editor
Diagnostic and Interventional Ultrasound Unit, Valle del Serchio General Hospital, Lucca, Italy
Interests: pulmonary medicine; intensive care; interventional ultrasound; thoracic ultrasound; non-invasive hemodynamics
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The use of ultrasound imaging for the monitoring and diagnosis of lung diseases is finally receiving the attention it deserves. Of particular interest are specific imaging artifacts, e.g., A- and B-lines. In particular, while A-lines are generally believed to be an indication of a healthy lung, B-lines have been found to correlate with several pathological conditions. In essence, these patterns carry information.

Spotting and recognising these artifacts is by itself already useful in clinical practice, and technical solutions aimed at automatically detecting and localising these patterns are of clear support for the clinician. However, deepening our knowledge on the ultrasound signals behind these artifacts, on their genesis, and on their link with the alterations of the lung structure, is crucial in order to develop quantitative signal processing and image analysis solutions able to distinguish different grades and types of diseases. The lung is in fact a very peculiar acoustic medium, and calls for a dedicated imaging approach.

This special issue focuses on the challenges we have to face if we are to make use of the full potentials of ultrasound technologies when applied to the lung. Contributions are welcome on the design, development and testing of automated artifact detection algorithms, dedicated signal processing and image analysis approaches, as well as on the fabrication of lung-mimicking phantoms, and on the clinical and safety aspects of LUS.

Assistant Professor, Dr. Libertario Demi
M.D. Gino Soldati
Guest Editors

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Keywords

  • lung ultrasound
  • signal processing
  • image analysis
  • pattern recognition
  • deep learning

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Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

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11 pages, 3757 KiB  
Article
Possible Role of Chest Ultrasonography for the Evaluation of Peripheral Fibrotic Pulmonary Changes in Patients Affected by Idiopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis—Pilot Case Series
by Andrea Smargiassi, Riccardo Inchingolo, Lucio Calandriello, Francesco Lombardi, Angelo Calabrese, Matteo Siciliano, Anna Rita Larici, Libertario Demi, Luca Richeldi and Gino Soldati
Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(5), 1617; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10051617 - 29 Feb 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2868
Abstract
Lung ultrasonography (LUS) provides an estimation of peripheral airspace (PAS) geometry of the lung. Altered PAS produces sonographic interstitial syndrome (SIS). Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) involves peripheral lung with altered PAS. The aim of the study is to correlate echographic patterns with peripheral [...] Read more.
Lung ultrasonography (LUS) provides an estimation of peripheral airspace (PAS) geometry of the lung. Altered PAS produces sonographic interstitial syndrome (SIS). Idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) involves peripheral lung with altered PAS. The aim of the study is to correlate echographic patterns with peripheral fibrotic changes on high-resolution Chest CT scan (HRCT). Patients underwent LUS and HRCT on the same date. Four LUS patterns were described: (1) near normal; (2) SIS with predominance of reverberant artifacts; (3) SIS with vertical predominance; (4) white lung. Four HRCT grades of peripheral fibrotic infiltrates were reported: grade 1 mild; grade 2 moderate; grade 3 severe; grade 4 massive or honeycomb. LUS pattern 1 was indicative of mild to moderate fibrotic alterations in 100% of cases. LUS pattern 2 matched with HRCT grade 2 in 24 out of 30 cases (77%). Huge discordance in four cases because of large honeycomb cysts. LUS pattern 3 was indicative of severe to massive alterations in 100% of cases. LUS pattern 4 showed a heterogeneous distribution of HRCT grades, severe changes, and ground glass opacities (GGO). This preliminary work demonstrates some level of agreement between LUS patterns and HRCT grades. Limitations and methodological issues have been shown to support subsequent studies of agreement. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Signal Processing and Image Analysis Techniques for Lung Ultrasound Imaging)
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7 pages, 2608 KiB  
Article
A Pilot Study of Wet Lung Using Lung Ultrasound Surface Wave Elastography in an Ex Vivo Swine Lung Model
by Xiaoming Zhang, Boran Zhou and Alex X. Zhang
Appl. Sci. 2019, 9(18), 3923; https://doi.org/10.3390/app9183923 - 19 Sep 2019
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2726
Abstract
Extravascular lung water (EVLW) is a basic symptom of congestive heart failure and other conditions. Computed tomography (CT) is standard method used to assess EVLW, but it requires ionizing radiation and radiology facilities. Lung ultrasound reverberation artifacts called B-lines have been used to [...] Read more.
Extravascular lung water (EVLW) is a basic symptom of congestive heart failure and other conditions. Computed tomography (CT) is standard method used to assess EVLW, but it requires ionizing radiation and radiology facilities. Lung ultrasound reverberation artifacts called B-lines have been used to assess EVLW. However, analysis of B-line artifacts depends on expert interpretation and is subjective. Lung ultrasound surface wave elastography (LUSWE) was developed to measure lung surface wave speed. This pilot study aimed at measureing lung surface wave speed due to lung water in an ex vivo swine lung model. The surface wave speeds of a fresh ex vivo swine lung were measured at 100 Hz, 200 Hz, 300 Hz, and 400 Hz. An amount of water was then filled into the lung through its trachea. Ultrasound imaging was used to guide the water filling until significant changes were visible on the imaging. The lung surface wave speeds were measured again. It was found that the lung surface wave speed increases with frequency and decreases with water volume. These findings are confirmed by experimental results on an additional ex vivo swine lung sample. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Signal Processing and Image Analysis Techniques for Lung Ultrasound Imaging)
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Review

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14 pages, 3183 KiB  
Review
Artifactual Lung Ultrasonography: It Is a Matter of Traps, Order, and Disorder
by Gino Soldati, Andrea Smargiassi, Libertario Demi and Riccardo Inchingolo
Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(5), 1570; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10051570 - 25 Feb 2020
Cited by 60 | Viewed by 7555
Abstract
When inspecting the lung with standard ultrasound B-mode imaging, numerous artifacts can be visualized. These artifacts are useful to recognize and evaluate several pathological conditions in Emergency and Intensive Care Medicine. More recently, the interest of the Pulmonologists has turned to the echographic [...] Read more.
When inspecting the lung with standard ultrasound B-mode imaging, numerous artifacts can be visualized. These artifacts are useful to recognize and evaluate several pathological conditions in Emergency and Intensive Care Medicine. More recently, the interest of the Pulmonologists has turned to the echographic study of the interstitial pathology of the lung. In fact, all lung pathologies which increase the density of the tissue, and do not consolidate the organ, are characterized by the presence of ultrasound artifacts. Many studies of the past have only assessed the number of vertical artifacts (generally known as B-Lines) as a sign of disease severity. However, recent observations suggest that the appearance of the individual artifacts, their variability, and their internal structure, may play a role for a non-invasive characterization of the surface of the lungs, directing the diagnoses and identifying groups of diseases. In this review, we discuss the meaning of lung ultrasound artifacts, and introduce hypothesis on the correlation between their presence and the structural variation of the sub-pleural tissue in light of current knowledge of the acoustic properties of the pleural plane. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Signal Processing and Image Analysis Techniques for Lung Ultrasound Imaging)
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11 pages, 3044 KiB  
Review
Complete Lung Ultrasound Using Liquid Filling: A Review of Methods Regarding Sonographic Findings and Clinical Relevance
by Frank Wolfram and Thomas G. Lesser
Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(2), 574; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10020574 - 13 Jan 2020
Viewed by 3156
Abstract
(200w) Lung ultrasound (LUS) is widely used for the diagnosis of pulmonary diseases such as solid nodules and consolidations in contact with the pleural cavity. However, sonography for processes of central disease remains impaired due to total sound reflection at the air tissue [...] Read more.
(200w) Lung ultrasound (LUS) is widely used for the diagnosis of pulmonary diseases such as solid nodules and consolidations in contact with the pleural cavity. However, sonography for processes of central disease remains impaired due to total sound reflection at the air tissue interfaces in the ventilated lung. These acoustic barriers can be overcome by replacing intra-alveolar air with liquid. Such filling has been reported using perfluorocarbon, saline or emulsions out of those. In order to achieve acoustic access enabling the use of LUS, complete gas free content is required. Such lung tissue - liquid compound will have untypical physical properties that might impact upon the sonographic visualization of central structures. Up to now, the filling of the lung has been reported for very specific applications and not classified regarding their sonographic findings. This work was therefore motivated to review the literature for methods of lung liquid instillation, classifying their methodological strength and limitations for achieving acoustic access and sonographic findings. Finally, their use for ultrasound based clinical applications will be discussed and the need for research will be outlined. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Signal Processing and Image Analysis Techniques for Lung Ultrasound Imaging)
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Graphical abstract

12 pages, 3052 KiB  
Review
Lung Ultrasound Imaging, a Technical Review
by Libertario Demi, Thomas Egan and Marie Muller
Appl. Sci. 2020, 10(2), 462; https://doi.org/10.3390/app10020462 - 8 Jan 2020
Cited by 36 | Viewed by 15493
Abstract
Lung ultrasound (LUS) is a growing and fascinating field of application for ultrasound imaging. Despite the difficulties in imaging an organ largely filled with air, the potential benefits originating from an effective ultrasound method focusing on monitoring and diagnosing lung diseases represent a [...] Read more.
Lung ultrasound (LUS) is a growing and fascinating field of application for ultrasound imaging. Despite the difficulties in imaging an organ largely filled with air, the potential benefits originating from an effective ultrasound method focusing on monitoring and diagnosing lung diseases represent a tremendous stimulus for research in this direction. This paper presents a technical review where, after a brief historical overview, the current limitations of LUS imaging are discussed together with a description of the physical phenomena at stake. Next, the paper focuses on the latest technical developments of LUS. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Signal Processing and Image Analysis Techniques for Lung Ultrasound Imaging)
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