Basic Investigation of Three-Dimensional Ultrasound Tissue Viscoelasticity Microscope

The mechanical properties, or elasticity and viscosity, of tissues reflect the pathological change of tissues caused by lifestyle-related diseases such as cancer and cardiac disease. Therefore, tissue elasticity imaging has been investigated for several years and a practical system applicable to clinical diagnosis has recently been developed. To diagnose the stage of disease progression and differentiate malignant from benign tumors precisely using parameters that represent tissue elasticity and viscosity, it is required to elucidate the quantitative relationship between these parameters and disease. However, no database for such a relationship has been yet established. With the aim of constructing such a database, we undertook to develop a three-dimensional (3D) tissue viscoelasticity microscope, with which we can quantitatively measure the 3D distribution of parameters of tissue elasticity and viscosity. Results of experiments using a phantom model made of konnyaku and acrylamide confirmed that the system could reveal differences in the elasticity and viscosity of tissues.