We carry out the research works on Ultrasonic Imaging, Bioeffects of ultrasonic exposure and Piezoelectric devices.
Tissue characterization by using sound velocity change due to ultrasonic heating
While biological tissue becomes cancerous, temperature dependence of sound velocity changes due to cancerous conditions. So it is capable of differential diagnosis of benign or malignant by temperature dependence of sound velocity. It is known that temperature of biological tissue is increased as exposed to ultrasound. Thus ultrasonic measurement of small change of sound velocity of biological tissue as exposed to ultrasound in short time has a potential for ultrasonic tissue characterization. In particular, the patients with fatty liver of growing fibrosis tissue causes cancerous has been increased in recent years. This type of disease is called as nonalcoholic steato-hepatitis (NASH). The aim of this study is to propose and confirm the feasibility of the method for diagnosis of NASH.
Multimodality imaging of MR and US
Ultrasonic probes which is capable of simultaneous use under high magnetic fields environments of MRI has been developed. Because this probe is equipped with MR markers, both of MRI and USI are easily merged and it is capable of producing a multimodality image as shown in the left hand side. US image (upper) MR image (middle) and fusion image (lower) of human neck region. Thyroid region is enhanced as red region in the fusion image.
