We present a case of postnatally recognized spondylocostal dysplasia that was prenatally misdiagnosed as fetal thoracolumbar kyphoscoliosis secondary to spinal fusion anomalies. Neither two-dimensional ultrasound nor MRI identified the rib anomalies, nor did they allow for correct identification of the more compromised lung. Spondylocostal and spondylothoracic dysostoses involve rib deformities...

Fetal gallstones and cholelithiasis, detected by routine third trimester ultrasound, have been described in the literature with controversial clinical significance. We report a case of fetal cholelithiasis detected at 35 weeks gestation during a routine scan. The diagnosis was performed using an integrated 2-dimensional (2-D) and 3-dimensional (3-D) ultrasound approach in order to obtain a bett...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES This report describes a method for producing anatomically detailed, low-cost ultrasound phantoms of the spine with 3-dimensional printing. An implementation that involves representing a portion of the lumbar spine and the ligamentum flavum with 2 different printing materials and the surrounding soft tissues with agar gel is presented. METHODS A computed tomography im...

Prenatal development of the human brain from undifferentiated neuroepithelium, crosses numerous steps towards primordial organization and subsequent cytoarchitectural layering, ascending and progressive from the lower cortical layers to the superior ones. Our study represents a systematic, comparative assessment of imaging studies and the histological evaluation of the prenatal development of t...

The geometry of the mitral leaflets, most commonly viewed using three-dimensional ultrasound, is an important input for mechanical models predicting valve closure. Current methods for leaflet modeling from ultrasound either require extensive user interaction, rely on inaccurate assumptions, or produce generic results. The presented method for modeling the mitral leaflets from three-dimensional ...

With relatively high frame rates and the ability to acquire volume data sets with a stationary transducer, 3D ultrasound systems, based on matrix phased array transducers, provide valuable three-dimensional information, from which quantitative measures of cardiac function can be extracted. Such analyses require segmentation and visual tracking of the left ventricular endocardial border. Due to ...

Real-time three-dimensional ultrasound has been demonstrated as a viable tool for guiding surgical procedures [1]. This visualization technique may enable a range of new minimally invasive techniques in cardiac and fetal surgery. It is becoming increasingly clear, however, that instruments such as endoscopic graspers when immersed in liquids display artifacts and irregularities that make it dif...

This paper presents a first set of experiments to integrate a realistic electro-mechanical model of a beating heart into simulated real-time three-dimensional (RT3D) ultrasound data. A novel ultrasound simulation framework is presented, extended from the model of Meunier [12]. True three-dimensional transducer modeling was performed, using RT3D acquisition design. Myocardium and blood scatterin...

Hepatocellular carcinoma has a decisive influence on the prognosis of cirrhotic patients, and the use of imaging modalities is essential for the screening, diagnosis and treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma. Ultrasound plays a major role among them, because it provides real-time and non-invasive observation by a simple and easy technique. In addition, ultrasound-guided needle puncture methods ...