ABSTRACT
However, people are not satised with only one parameter estimation from a bulk tissue; the mechanical properties of tissues actually vary locally. What can be measured from mechanical testing methods such as indentation or suction is an overall average of material elasticity; the local variation of material properties is dicult to measure using these tests. Although it is possible to probe the local mechanical property of a tissue using a computational method such as FEM, this method is not popular because of the high computational cost and inaccurate estimation caused by too many uncertain tissue parameters. In comparison with bulk measurement, shear wave elastography (SWE), which is directly related to the tissue’s shear modulus, can measure the shear wave propagation velocity in a local region. Multiple measurements of the shear modulus at dierent points of the tissue are thus possible using this technique, and it quickly becomes popular for clinical applications, as it is of great diagnostic value for not only diuse diseases but also focal ones. However, the price is a high-speed ultrasound imaging system that is necessary to achieve quantitative elasticity imaging through SWE.
