CN111655154B

CN111655154B - Ultrasonic imaging method and ultrasonic imaging system

Info

Publication number: CN111655154B
Application number: CN201880016282.0A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李双双; 何绪金
Original assignee: Shenzhen Mindray Bio Medical Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Shenzhen Mindray Bio Medical Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 2018-12-04
Filing date: 2018-12-04
Publication date: 2021-07-20
Anticipated expiration: 2038-12-04
Also published as: CN113081054A; WO2020113397A1; CN113081054B; CN111655154A

Abstract

An ultrasonic imaging method and an ultrasonic imaging system are used for improving the intuitiveness of an image. The ultrasonic imaging method comprises the following steps: transmitting a first ultrasonic wave to a target tissue and receiving a first ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue to obtain a first ultrasonic echo signal (501); acquiring an ultrasound image (502) of the target tissue according to the first ultrasound echo signal; acquiring an acoustic attenuation image (503) of a first region in the target tissue; transmitting shear waves to the target tissue, and transmitting second ultrasonic waves to a second region in the target tissue and receiving second ultrasonic echoes returned from the second region to obtain second ultrasonic echo signals, the shear waves being used for vibrating the target tissue (504); determining an elasticity parameter of a second region in the target tissue from the second ultrasound echo signal (505); the ultrasound image, the acoustic attenuation image, and the elasticity parameter are displayed (506).

Description

Ultrasonic imaging method and ultrasonic imaging system

Technical Field

The present application relates to the field of medical devices, and in particular, to an ultrasound imaging method and an ultrasound imaging system.

Background

Ultrasound elastography is one of the hot spots concerned by clinical research in recent years, mainly reflects elasticity or hardness of tissues, and is increasingly applied to the aspects of auxiliary detection of tissue cancer lesions, benign and malignant discrimination, prognosis recovery evaluation and the like.

Ultrasound elastography mainly images elasticity-related parameters in a region of interest, reflecting the softness and hardness of tissues. Over the last two decades, a number of different elastography methods have emerged, such as quasi-static elastography based on strain caused by the probe pressing against the tissue, shear wave elastography or elastometry based on acoustic radiation force to generate shear waves, transient elastography based on external vibrations to generate shear waves, etc. The ultrasonic instantaneous elastography mainly designs a special probe to emit ultrasonic waves to detect the internal displacement of the tissue while generating vibration, thereby determining the instantaneous elasticity parameters of the obtained tissue, and the ultrasonic instantaneous elastography is widely popular among doctors in clinical liver disease detection, especially in auxiliary diagnosis of liver fibrosis degree. In addition, in practical clinical application, other information, such as sound attenuation parameters, is also required to be combined to comprehensively reflect the properties of tissues, so as to facilitate comprehensive diagnosis. The different fat mass of the tissue often causes differences in the sound attenuation parameters.

However, in the existing scheme, the determined instantaneous elastic parameter and acoustic attenuation parameter are a global average estimation result of the target tissue, and the tissue property inside the target tissue cannot be reflected, so that an operator can obtain the instantaneous elastic parameter and the acoustic attenuation parameter according to the determination and cannot obtain an accurate observation result of the target tissue.

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides an ultrasonic imaging method and an ultrasonic imaging system, which are used for improving the intuitiveness of an image.

A first aspect of embodiments of the present application provides an ultrasound imaging method, including: transmitting a first ultrasonic wave to a target tissue, and receiving a first ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue to obtain a first ultrasonic echo signal; acquiring an ultrasonic image of the target tissue according to the first ultrasonic echo signal; acquiring a sound attenuation image of a first region in the target tissue; transmitting shear waves to the target tissue, transmitting second ultrasonic waves to a second region in the target tissue, and receiving second ultrasonic echoes returned from the second region to obtain second ultrasonic echo signals, wherein the shear waves are used for vibrating the target tissue; determining an elasticity parameter of a second region in the target tissue from the second ultrasound echo signal; displaying the ultrasound image, the acoustic attenuation image, and the elasticity parameter.

A second aspect of an embodiment of the present application provides an ultrasound imaging method, including: transmitting a first ultrasonic wave to a target tissue, and receiving a first ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue to obtain a first ultrasonic echo signal; acquiring an ultrasonic image of the target tissue according to the first ultrasonic echo signal; acquiring a sound attenuation image of a first region in the target tissue; displaying the ultrasound image and the acoustic attenuation image.

A third aspect of embodiments of the present application provides an ultrasound imaging system, comprising: the device comprises a probe, a transmitting/receiving sequence circuit, a vibrator, a processor and a display;

the transmitting/receiving sequence circuit is used for exciting the probe to generate a first ultrasonic wave;

the probe is used for transmitting the first ultrasonic wave to a target tissue and receiving a first ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue to obtain a first ultrasonic echo signal;

the processor is used for acquiring an ultrasonic image of the target tissue according to the first ultrasonic echo signal and acquiring an acoustic attenuation image of a first region in the target tissue;

the transmitting/receiving sequence circuit is also used for exciting the probe to generate a second ultrasonic wave;

the probe is further used for transmitting shear waves to the target tissue, transmitting the second ultrasonic waves to a second region in the target tissue and receiving second ultrasonic echoes returned from the second region to obtain second ultrasonic echo signals, and the shear waves are used for vibrating the target tissue;

the processor is further configured to determine an elasticity parameter of a second region in the target tissue from the second ultrasonic echo signal;

the display is used for displaying the ultrasonic image, the sound attenuation image and the elasticity parameter.

A fourth aspect of embodiments of the present application provides an ultrasound imaging system, comprising: the device comprises a probe, a transmitting/receiving sequence circuit, a processor and a display;

the display is used for displaying the ultrasonic image and the sound attenuation image.

A fifth aspect of embodiments of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium having stored therein instructions, which, when executed on a computer, cause the computer to perform the imaging method provided by the above-mentioned first aspect or second aspect.

In the embodiment of the application, a first ultrasonic wave is emitted to a target tissue, and a first ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue is received, so that a first ultrasonic echo signal is obtained. An acoustic attenuation image of a first region in the target tissue is then acquired, and an ultrasound image is acquired from the first ultrasound echo signal. Transmitting shear waves to the target tissue, transmitting second ultrasonic waves to a second region in the target tissue, receiving second ultrasonic echoes returned from the second region, obtaining second ultrasonic echo signals, and determining elastic parameters of the second region in the target tissue according to the second ultrasonic echo signals; the ultrasound image, the acoustic attenuation image, and the elasticity parameter are displayed. Therefore, the embodiment of the application displays the acoustic attenuation image and the elastic parameter simultaneously on the basis of displaying the ultrasonic image. In addition, the elastic parameter is a parameter of the second region in the target tissue, so that the local elastic parameter in the target tissue can be reflected more accurately and more intuitively based on the ultrasound image and the acoustic attenuation image. Therefore, an operator can observe the local part in the target tissue by combining the ultrasonic image, the sound attenuation image and the elastic parameter, and the intuitiveness of displaying the local elastic parameter is improved.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural block diagram of a possible ultrasound imaging system provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of a possible probe according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of another possible probe provided in an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 4 is a schematic view of a possible scenario in which a probe transmits ultrasonic waves according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 5 is a schematic flow chart of a possible ultrasound imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 is an ultrasound display diagram of a possible ultrasound imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 7 is an ultrasound display diagram of another possible ultrasound imaging method provided by embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 8 is an ultrasonic energy attenuation map of one possible ultrasonic imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 9 is an ultrasonic energy attenuation map of another possible ultrasonic imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

fig. 10 is an ultrasonic echo signal gain diagram of a possible ultrasonic imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 11 is an ultrasonic echo signal gain diagram of another possible ultrasonic imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 12 is a timing diagram of ultrasound emission for one possible ultrasound imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 13 is a timing diagram of ultrasound emission in another possible ultrasound imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 14 is a timing diagram of ultrasound emission for another possible ultrasound imaging method provided by embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 15 is a second selected region of a possible ultrasound imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 16 is a graph of a shear wave propagation trajectory for one possible ultrasound imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 17 is a shear wave propagation plot of another possible ultrasound imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 18 is an ultrasound display diagram of another possible ultrasound imaging method provided by embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 19 is a block diagram illustrating another possible ultrasound imaging system provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 20 is a schematic flow chart of another possible ultrasound imaging method provided by the embodiments of the present application;

FIG. 21 is an ultrasound display diagram of another possible ultrasound imaging method provided by embodiments of the present application;

fig. 22 is an ultrasound display diagram of another possible ultrasound imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application.

Detailed Description

The application provides an ultrasonic imaging method and an ultrasonic imaging system, which are used for improving the intuitiveness of ultrasonic elastography.

The terms "first," "second," "third," "fourth," and the like in the description and in the claims of the present application and in the drawings described above, if any, are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. It will be appreciated that the data so used may be interchanged under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments described herein may be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated or described herein. Furthermore, the terms "comprises," "comprising," and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, system, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of steps or elements is not necessarily limited to those steps or elements expressly listed, but may include other steps or elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus.

Fig. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an ultrasound imaging system 10 in an embodiment of the present application. The ultrasound imaging system 10 may include a probe 100, wherein the probe 100 may be an ultrasound probe, a transmit/receive selection switch 101, a transmit/receive sequence controller 102, a processor 103, a display 104. The transmit/receive sequence controller 102 may excite the ultrasound probe 100 to transmit ultrasound waves to the target tissue, and may also control the ultrasound probe 100 to receive ultrasound echoes returned from the target tissue, thereby obtaining ultrasound echo signals/data. The processor 103 processes the ultrasound echo signals/data to obtain tissue-related parameters of the target tissue and an ultrasound image. Ultrasound images obtained by the processor 103 may be stored in the memory 105 and displayed on the display 104. In some possible implementations, the ultrasound imaging system 10 further includes a vibrator 106, and the vibrator 106 may be installed inside the probe 100 or disposed outside the probe 100. The vibrator 106 may be used to generate a particular waveform of vibration, i.e., shear waves, and vibrate the probe 100, although in some possible implementations the ultrasound imaging system 10 generates shear waves directly from acoustic radiation forces without a vibrator.

In this embodiment, the display 104 of the ultrasonic imaging system 10 may be a touch display screen, a liquid crystal display, or the like, or may be an independent display device such as a liquid crystal display, a television, or the like, which is independent of the ultrasonic imaging system 10, or may be a display screen on an electronic device such as a mobile phone, a tablet computer, or the like.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, a sensor may be further disposed inside the probe 100, and the sensor is used for feeding back the vibration strength of the vibrator or the pressing force of the probe 100 on the target tissue. The vibration generated by the vibrator 106 can be controlled based on the feedback from the sensor, making the shear wave generated by the vibrator 106 more stable. And the pressing force of the probe 100 on the target tissue can be adjusted according to the feedback of the sensor, so that the shear wave can be transmitted into the target tissue with high quality, and the detection accuracy of instantaneous elasticity is improved.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, the acoustic head portion of the probe 100 may be an array of a plurality of two or more array elements. The array elements may be used to convert electrical signals into ultrasonic waves and transmit the ultrasonic waves, and to receive returned ultrasonic echoes, which are converted into electrical signals to obtain ultrasonic echo data/signals. The shape of the array can be linear arrangement, fan-shaped arrangement, and the like, and can be specifically adjusted according to actual application scenes. Illustratively, the linear arrangement may be as shown in fig. 2, with the plurality of array elements in linear rows. Illustratively, the sector arrangement may be as shown in fig. 3, with a plurality of array elements arranged in a sector arrangement. Each array element transmits ultrasonic waves or receives ultrasonic echoes by receiving the transmitting signals of the transmitting circuit and the receiving signals sent by the receiving circuit. Specifically, a scene in which the probe 100 transmits ultrasound may be as shown in fig. 4, where an array element inside the probe 100 transmits ultrasound waves to a target tissue and receives ultrasound echoes returned from the target tissue.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, the memory 105 of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 10 can be a flash memory card, a solid-state memory, a hard disk, or the like.

In an optional embodiment of the present application, a computer-readable storage medium is further provided, where the computer-readable storage medium stores a plurality of program instructions, and the program instructions, when invoked and executed by the processor 103, may perform some or all of the steps of the ultrasound imaging method in the various embodiments of the present application, or any combination of the steps therein.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, the computer readable storage medium may be the memory 105, which may be a non-volatile storage medium such as a flash memory card, a solid state memory, a hard disk, or the like.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, the processor 103 of the ultrasound imaging apparatus 10 may be implemented by software, hardware, firmware or a combination thereof, and may use a circuit, a single or multiple Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASICs), a single or multiple general purpose integrated circuits, a single or multiple microprocessors, a single or multiple programmable logic devices, or a combination of the foregoing circuits or devices, or other suitable circuits or devices, so that the processor 103 may execute the corresponding steps of the ultrasound imaging method in the various embodiments of the present application.

Referring to fig. 5, an ultrasound imaging method provided by an embodiment of the present application is applied to an ultrasound imaging system 10, and is particularly suitable for an ultrasound imaging system 10 including a touch display screen, so that a touch operation can be input by touching the touch display screen. The ultrasound imaging system 10 may generate elasticity images using the ultrasound echo data, may generate conventional ultrasound B images or doppler images using the ultrasound echo data, and so on. The ultrasonic imaging method embodiment in the application comprises the following steps:

501. a first ultrasonic wave is transmitted to the target tissue, and a first ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue is received, so that a first ultrasonic echo signal is obtained.

First, a probe can be used to transmit a first ultrasonic wave to a target tissue, the target tissue generates an ultrasonic echo under the excitation of the first ultrasonic wave, the probe receives the ultrasonic echo, and the ultrasonic echo is converted into an electric signal to obtain a first ultrasonic echo signal. Wherein the target tissue may be any human tissue.

In one embodiment of the present application, based on the aforementioned ultrasound imaging system 10, the processor controls to turn on the transmission/reception selection switch 101, and through the transmission/reception sequence controller, the excitation probe 100 generates the first ultrasound wave according to the parameters of the ultrasound image and transmits the first ultrasound wave to the target tissue. And receives the ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue through the probe 100 to obtain a first ultrasonic echo signal, and transmits the first ultrasonic echo signal to the processor 103, and the processor 103 processes the first ultrasonic echo signal to obtain an ultrasonic image. Wherein the first ultrasound echoes may include echoes returned from different depths of the target tissue.

In one embodiment of the present application, the transmit/receive sequence controller can generate a first sequence for exciting the probe to produce a first ultrasonic wave. The first sequence may include one or more sets of transmission of ultrasound waves and reception of ultrasound echoes. For example, the first sequence may include transmitting a set of first ultrasonic waves, and receiving a first ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to the first ultrasonic waves after 1ms, and so on.

In one embodiment of the present application, the probe 100 can emit the first ultrasonic waves to the target tissue from different angles, and the area emitting the first ultrasonic waves covers the region of the target tissue. And the first ultrasonic wave may penetrate a preset depth of the target tissue. Therefore, the ultrasonic image acquired according to the first ultrasonic echo signal can completely cover the range of the target tissue.

502. And acquiring an ultrasonic image of the target tissue according to the first ultrasonic echo signal.

After the first ultrasonic echo signal is acquired, imaging is carried out according to the parameters of the first ultrasonic echo signal, and an ultrasonic image of the target tissue is obtained.

In one embodiment of the present application, after receiving the first ultrasonic echo signal, noise in the first ultrasonic echo signal may be removed. The ultrasonic echo signal is processed by the beam forming circuit, and then transmitted to the processor 105, and the processor 105 processes the ultrasonic echo signal to obtain an ultrasonic image of the target tissue.

In an embodiment of the present application, the ultrasound image may be a grayscale image, a color doppler blood flow image, or other images, which is not limited herein. Also, the grayscale image or the color doppler flow image may be displayed on the display 104.

In one embodiment of the present application, the first ultrasound echo may include echoes returned from different depths of the target tissue, and then the first ultrasound echo signal may yield return information for different depths of tissue of the target tissue. Thus, when generating an ultrasound image, ultrasound images of tissue at different depths in the target tissue may be obtained.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, the ultrasound image may be a grayscale image. The specific ultrasound image acquisition mode may be that after the first ultrasound echo signal is obtained, noise in the first ultrasound echo signal may be removed. The ultrasonic echo signal is transmitted to the processor 103 after being subjected to beam forming processing, and the processor 103 processes the ultrasonic echo signal, including determining each pixel value corresponding to the target tissue according to the amplitude value of the first ultrasonic echo signal and preset weight information, and obtaining a gray scale image of the target tissue according to each pixel value.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, the ultrasound image may comprise a color doppler flow image. And obtaining a color Doppler blood flow image through color Doppler blood flow imaging. Specifically, after the first ultrasonic echo signal is obtained, noise in the first ultrasonic echo signal may be removed. The ultrasonic echo signal is transmitted to the processor 103 after being subjected to beam forming processing, and the processor 103 processes the ultrasonic echo signal, including determining each pixel value corresponding to the target tissue according to the amplitude value of the first ultrasonic echo signal and a preset blood flow parameter, and obtaining a color doppler blood flow image of the target tissue according to each pixel value. The color doppler flow image may reflect the direction and flow velocity of the blood flow of the target tissue. Moreover, the color doppler blood flow image can be obtained by superimposing blood flow information on the basis of the gray-scale image. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, in addition to displaying the ultrasound image of the target tissue, a color doppler blood flow image may also be displayed, so as to further display the blood flow information inside the target tissue, which is convenient for observing the target tissue.

503. An acoustic attenuation image of a first region in a target tissue is acquired.

In an embodiment of the present application, an acoustic attenuation image of a first region in a target tissue may be acquired. Specifically, the sound attenuation parameter of the first region may be obtained first, and then the pixel value of each pixel point of the sound attenuation image is determined according to the sound attenuation parameter, so as to obtain the sound attenuation image.

It should be noted that, in the embodiment of the present application, the execution order of step 502 and step 503 is not limited, and step 502 may be executed first, or step 503 may be executed first, which may be specifically adjusted according to an actual application scenario.

It should be further noted that, on the basis of displaying the ultrasound image, the embodiment of the present application may also display only the sound attenuation image, also display the sound attenuation image and the sound attenuation parameter, and also display only the sound attenuation parameter, which may be specifically adjusted according to the actual application scenario, and is not limited herein.

In an alternative embodiment of the application, the sound attenuation image may be color coded from the sound attenuation parameters of the first region. Specifically, the distribution of the sound attenuation values in the first region may be determined, and then the sound attenuation values are converted into the pixel value of each pixel point in the sound attenuation image according to the preset corresponding relationship according to the distribution of the sound attenuation values, where the pixel value includes: brightness values, gray scale values, color values, etc. And combining the pixel values of each pixel point to obtain the sound attenuation image. The preset correspondence may be a correspondence between the acoustic attenuation value and a pixel value, for example, the pixel value may be N times the acoustic attenuation value, or the pixel value may be calculated from the acoustic attenuation value according to a preset formula. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, the sound attenuation image can reflect the distribution of the sound attenuation parameters more by means of color coding, and the sound attenuation of the first region of the target tissue can be observed more conveniently.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, the ultrasound image and the acoustic attenuation image may be displayed on the display 104 after they are obtained. The ultrasound image and the sound attenuation image can be displayed separately, or the sound attenuation image can be superimposed on the ultrasound image for display. An exemplary overlay display of an ultrasound image and an acoustic attenuation image may be as shown in fig. 6, where an ultrasound image 601 is overlaid with an acoustic attenuation image 602. It is understood that the acoustic attenuation image is fused with the ultrasound image to obtain and display a first fused image, which is an overlay of the ultrasound image 601 and the acoustic attenuation image 602 shown in fig. 6. In addition, the sound attenuation image and the ultrasound image can be displayed separately, i.e. 601 and 602 in fig. 6, which is not described herein. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, the acoustic attenuation image may be superimposed into the ultrasound image, and the acoustic attenuation characteristics of the first region in the target tissue may be displayed more intuitively.

In an optional embodiment of the present application, when the sound attenuation image and the ultrasound image are fused to obtain a first fused image, and the first fused image is displayed, the sound attenuation parameters may also be displayed simultaneously. Illustratively, as shown in fig. 7, it may be displayed in the display that: "acoustic attenuation parameters: XXX ". Thus, in the present embodiment, in addition to displaying the acoustic attenuation image, the acoustic attenuation parameters may be displayed directly to directly reflect the acoustic attenuation characteristics of the first region of the target tissue.

It should be understood that the location and size of the first region in fig. 6 and 7 are merely exemplary, the first region is located in the target tissue, and the size of the first region may be all or part of the target tissue.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, the first region may be a region arbitrarily determined from the target tissue. Alternatively, the ultrasound image may be displayed on a display, and then the user may input the target tissue. The preset rule may be obtained according to a target tissue displayed in the ultrasound image, where the preset rule may be to use a region where a difference between a pixel value and a surrounding pixel value is greater than a threshold as the first region, or to use a region where pixel values are distributed as the first region, and so on. The method can be adjusted according to actual application scenes.

In an alternative embodiment of the application, the acoustic attenuation parameter of the first region may be derived from the first ultrasound echo signal. Firstly, determining a signal corresponding to a first region from a first ultrasonic echo signal, and then determining the sound attenuation parameter of the first region according to the amplitude value of the signal corresponding to the first region at each preset depth. Typically, the ultrasonic echo signals returned from different depths, i.e., the distance of the tissue in the first region from the probe, are different in amplitude, and the amplitude of the ultrasonic echo signal obtained from the tissue at a deeper depth is typically lower. Furthermore, the amplitude of the ultrasonic echo signal is usually changed due to different tissue properties. Therefore, the sound attenuation parameters of the first area are determined according to the amplitude of the signal corresponding to the first area at each preset depth, so that the change rate of the amplitude at each preset depth can be determined, and the sound attenuation parameters can be obtained more accurately. Accordingly, when the transmission/reception sequence controller generates a sequence corresponding to the first ultrasonic wave, the sequence includes parameters common to the ultrasonic image and the acoustic attenuation parameters, such as the transmission frequency, the transmission waveform length, the reception lateral position range, the reception side amplification remark, the reception filtering parameters, and the like. In an embodiment of the present application, the acoustic attenuation parameter of the first region may be derived from the first ultrasound echo signal. Therefore, the resources of the first ultrasonic wave can be efficiently utilized, and the ultrasonic wave can be prevented from being repeatedly transmitted.

In an alternative embodiment of the application, the acoustic attenuation parameter of the first region may be derived from the third ultrasound echo signal. Specifically, a third ultrasonic wave may be transmitted to the first region through the probe, and an ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue may be received to obtain a third ultrasonic echo signal. The third ultrasonic wave is generated by the probe by the third sequence generated by the transmission/reception sequence controller according to the information related to the acoustic attenuation of the first region. Similar to the determination of the acoustic attenuation parameter of the first region according to the first ultrasonic echo signal, the third ultrasonic echo signal includes the amplitude of each preset depth corresponding to the first region, and the acoustic attenuation parameter of the first region is determined according to the amplitude of each preset depth corresponding to the first region. Accordingly, when the transmission/reception sequence controller generates the sequence corresponding to the third ultrasonic wave, only the parameters related to the acoustic attenuation parameters, such as the transmission frequency, the transmission waveform length, the reception lateral position range, the reception side amplification remark, the reception filtering parameters, and the like, are included in the sequence. In this embodiment, the third ultrasonic wave may be directly transmitted to the first region to obtain a third ultrasonic echo signal, and the acoustic attenuation parameter of the first region may be determined according to the third ultrasonic echo signal. The resulting sound attenuation parameters of the first region can be made more accurate.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, when determining the acoustic attenuation parameter according to the first ultrasonic echo signal or the third ultrasonic echo signal, generally, the amplitude of the ultrasonic echo signal decreases with the increase of the depth, and when converting the amplitude into a unit of dB, it may be determined that the amplitude tends to decrease with the increase of the depth, as shown in fig. 8, the slope of the energy attenuation of the ultrasonic echo may be understood as the acoustic attenuation value. Typically, the characteristics of the tissue will also affect the acoustic attenuation parameters, which may not be the same at different depth values. Thus, the depth may be divided into a plurality of preset depth ranges, as shown in fig. 9. Then, the change rate of each preset depth range is determined according to the amplitude value of each preset depth range, and then the change rate of each preset depth range is calculated, for example, weighted operation, average value calculation and the like, so as to calculate the sound attenuation parameter of the first area. Alternatively, the change rates of the preset depth ranges may be directly and respectively calculated to obtain the acoustic attenuation values of the preset depth ranges. Therefore, the embodiment of the application can divide the first area into a plurality of preset depth ranges for calculation, so that the calculated sound attenuation parameters are more accurate. It is avoided that the calculated acoustic attenuation parameters cannot reflect the tissue characteristics of the first region due to the different characteristics of the tissue interior of the first region. In the embodiment of the application, when the acoustic attenuation parameter is determined, the amplitude value in the first ultrasonic echo signal or the third ultrasonic echo signal does not need to be amplified and enhanced, and the amplitude value is directly used. And the sound attenuation parameters at different depths are calculated in a segmented manner, so that the inaccuracy of the sound attenuation parameters caused by different characteristics in the target tissue is avoided. Thus, the resulting sound attenuation parameters can be made more accurate.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, when acquiring the ultrasound image and the acoustic attenuation parameter according to the first ultrasound echo signal, different processing is generally required for the parameters included in the first ultrasound echo signal. When an ultrasound image is acquired according to the first ultrasound echo signal, in general, in order to make the ultrasound image clearer, parameters included in the first ultrasound echo signal are amplified and enhanced by different amplification factors according to different depths. In addition to magnification, other parameters may be different, for example, if the ultrasound image includes a color doppler flow image, then a color-related value needs to be determined. In obtaining the acoustic attenuation parameters from the first ultrasonic echo signal, it is generally necessary to maintain the difference between the values of the respective depths in the first ultrasonic echo signal. For example, when an ultrasound image is acquired, harmonic frequency components are generally extracted from the first ultrasound echo signal and calculated, and when an acoustic attenuation parameter is performed, a fundamental frequency is generally extracted and calculated in order to improve the penetration force. For example, the gain between the pixel value in the ultrasound image and the amplitude in the first ultrasound echo signal may be referred to in fig. 10, and the gain is larger as the depth increases. When determining the acoustic attenuation parameter, the gain for the amplitude in the first ultrasonic echo signal is as shown in fig. 11, and the gain does not need to be changed as the depth increases. In this embodiment, determining the acoustic attenuation parameter and the ultrasound image requires different processing on the first ultrasound echo signal, which can improve the utilization rate of the first ultrasound echo signal and can more accurately acquire the acoustic attenuation parameter and the ultrasound image.

In an optional embodiment of the present application, after the acoustic attenuation parameter is determined, the ultrasound image may be obtained according to the acoustic attenuation parameter, or the ultrasound image may be adjusted according to the acoustic attenuation parameter. Specifically, if an ultrasound image is obtained according to the acoustic attenuation parameter, after a first ultrasound echo signal is obtained, a pixel value of each pixel point of the target tissue and a gain corresponding to each pixel point are determined according to each amplitude of the first ultrasound echo signal in combination with the acoustic attenuation parameter. And then determining the final pixel value of each pixel point according to the pixel value of each pixel point and the gain corresponding to each pixel point to obtain the ultrasonic image. If the ultrasonic image is adjusted according to the acoustic attenuation parameter, the gain of the pixel value of each pixel point in the ultrasonic image can be directly determined according to the acoustic attenuation parameter, and then the final pixel value of each pixel point in the ultrasonic image is determined according to the gain and the pixel value of each pixel point, so that the adjusted ultrasonic image is obtained. In an embodiment of the present application, the ultrasound image may be acquired by an acoustic attenuation parameter, which may reflect characteristics of tissues at different depths. Therefore, the ultrasonic image is acquired or adjusted by combining the acoustic attenuation parameters, so that the ultrasonic image is more accurate and can reflect the characteristics of the target tissue.

It should be understood that if the ultrasound image is obtained according to the acoustic attenuation parameter, then a third ultrasound wave is transmitted to the target tissue before the ultrasound image is obtained before or after the first ultrasound wave is transmitted to the target tissue, and an ultrasound echo is received, so that a third ultrasound echo signal is obtained. Or if the acoustic attenuation parameter is determined according to the first ultrasonic echo signal, acquiring the ultrasonic image after determining the acoustic attenuation parameter.

In an alternative embodiment of the application, the acoustic attenuation parameters may comprise one or more of an average acoustic attenuation value, a maximum acoustic attenuation value or a minimum acoustic attenuation value of the first region.

504. Transmitting the shear waves to the target tissue, and transmitting a second ultrasonic wave to a second region in the target tissue and receiving a second ultrasonic echo returned from the second region to obtain a second ultrasonic echo signal.

In the embodiment of the present application, the shear wave may be generated by external vibration to perform transient elastography, or the shear wave may be generated based on acoustic radiation force to be used for shear wave elastography. Specifically, taking the example of the vibrator generating the shear wave, the probe may be vibrated by the vibrator in the ultrasound imaging system in fig. 1, and the shear wave generated by the vibration is transmitted to the target tissue through the probe. And sending a second ultrasonic wave to a second region in the target tissue, and receiving a second ultrasonic echo returned from the second region to obtain a second ultrasonic echo signal.

Specifically, the target tissue generates a rebound under the influence of the shear wave, and at this time, a state change of the target tissue under the influence of the shear wave can be recorded through a second ultrasonic echo signal returned by the target tissue, and an elastic parameter of the second region is determined according to the state change, wherein the elastic parameter can be an instantaneous elastic parameter or a shear wave elastic parameter. Thus, in combination with the second ultrasonic wave and the shear wave, the elastic parameter of the second region in the target tissue can be accurately determined.

In one embodiment of the present application, the transmit/receive sequence controller may generate a second sequence for exciting the probe to produce a second ultrasound wave. The second sequence may include one or more sets of transmission of ultrasound waves and reception of ultrasound echoes. For example, the second sequence may include transmitting a plurality of sets of second ultrasonic waves, each set of second ultrasonic waves having a radiation interval of 2ms, and receiving a second ultrasonic echo signal corresponding to the second ultrasonic wave after each interval of 2ms, and so on.

In an optional embodiment of the present application, the first ultrasonic wave or the third ultrasonic wave may be sent first, or the shear wave may be transmitted first and the second ultrasonic wave may be sent first, which may be specifically adjusted according to an actual application scenario.

Exemplarily, the following is more pictorially explained with the time axis as the abscissa. The first ultrasonic wave or the third ultrasonic wave may be transmitted first, as shown in fig. 12, and the first ultrasonic wave or the third ultrasonic wave may be transmitted first, and after a first time interval is preset, the vibrator is vibrated, and the probe is driven to vibrate, so as to transmit shear waves to the target tissue, and transmit the second ultrasonic wave at the same time. The scenario of transmitting the shear wave first and transmitting the second ultrasound wave may be as shown in fig. 13. The vibrator is first vibrated and the probe is driven to vibrate, transmitting shear waves through the probe to the target tissue. While a second ultrasonic wave is emitted. The first ultrasonic wave or the third ultrasonic wave is transmitted after that.

Generally, to avoid the influence of the vibration on the target tissue, the first ultrasonic wave or the third ultrasonic wave may be transmitted first, or the first ultrasonic wave or the second ultrasonic wave may be transmitted after the second duration is preset to avoid the influence of the vibration on the target tissue.

In addition, to improve the accuracy of the instantaneous elastography, multiple vibrations and the emission of the second ultrasonic wave may be performed. Illustratively, as shown in FIG. 14, each vibration may be separated by a preset third time period, which may be set to a longer time period to avoid the effect of the vibration on the target tissue. Of course, in addition to repeating the vibrating and emitting the second ultrasonic wave, the transmission of the first ultrasonic wave or the third ultrasonic wave may be repeated a plurality of times so that the obtained ultrasonic image and the sound attenuation image can reflect the characteristics of the target tissue more.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, the second region may be determined by receiving an input to the target tissue, for example, after displaying an ultrasound image of the target tissue, the user may make an input to select a partial region in the target tissue as the second region according to the displayed ultrasound image. And the transmitting/receiving sequence controller generates corresponding sequence parameters according to the determined position and size of the second area so as to excite the probe to generate corresponding second ultrasonic waves and transmit the second ultrasonic waves to the second area. Simultaneously, the vibrator produces vibrations that drive the probe to transmit shear waves to the second region. To record the state of the target tissue under shear waves by the second ultrasound. Illustratively, a schematic representation of the second region in the target tissue may be as shown in fig. 15, the second region being in the target tissue, the location, size and shape of the second region being selected by the user and input via the input device. Therefore, in the embodiment of the present application, the size, position and shape of the second region may be input by a user. The area where the elasticity parameter needs to be calculated can be determined more directly, facilitating the observation of the second area.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, the second area may also be determined according to preset rules. For example, the second region may be a region in which pixel values in the ultrasound image are different from surrounding pixel values by more than a threshold value after the ultrasound image is acquired, or a region in which pixel values are distributed all together, or the like. Furthermore, the second region may also be an arbitrary region in the target tissue randomly determined in the ultrasound image. In the embodiment of the present application, the second region may be determined according to a preset rule, and for some regions with differences, the elasticity parameter of the region may be obtained, which may further reflect the characteristics of the regions with differences. The characteristics of the target tissue can be more comprehensively analyzed.

In an optional embodiment of the present application, the first area and the second area may be the same area, or the first area includes the second area, or the second area includes the first area, or the first area and the second area are independent of each other, which may be specifically adjusted according to an actual application scenario.

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, a marker map of the second region may also be displayed in the ultrasound image. First, a marker map corresponding to the second region is generated, and the marker map may be, for example, a marker frame that matches the boundary of the second region, or a graph that has a shape that is consistent with the shape of the second region. And fusing the label map into the ultrasonic image to obtain a second fused image, and displaying the second fused image. So that the second region where the elastic parameter is measured is displayed further when the ultrasound image is displayed. So that the operator can observe the characteristics of the target tissue more clearly and accurately. And if the second area is determined by the user input, whether the second area corresponding to the elasticity parameter is correct can be determined more accurately.

In an optional embodiment of the present application, after obtaining the second ultrasonic echo signal, a propagation trace map or a propagation curve graph of the shear wave may be further obtained according to the second ultrasonic echo signal, and the propagation trace map or the propagation curve graph is displayed. Illustratively, the propagation trace map may be as shown in fig. 16, and may show the propagation process of the shear wave in the target tissue. The propagation graph may be as shown in fig. 17, and may show the propagation direction and path of the shear wave in the target tissue. In the embodiment of the application, a propagation trace diagram or a propagation curve graph of the shear wave can be displayed, the propagation path of the shear wave in the target tissue can be visually observed, whether the shear wave affects the region in which the elastic parameter needs to be determined can be determined, and the obtained elastic parameter can reflect the characteristics of the second region of the target tissue better.

505. Determining an elasticity parameter of a second region in the target tissue from the second ultrasound echo signal.

After the second ultrasonic echo signal is obtained, determining an elasticity parameter of a second region in the target tissue according to the second ultrasonic echo signal.

Specifically, the target tissue, under the influence of the shear wave, generates a rebound. The parameters included in the second ultrasonic echo signal can record the state of the target tissue before the shear wave is received and the state after the shear wave is received, calculate the displacement value generated by the target tissue between the two states, and determine the elastic parameters of the target tissue according to the displacement value. Still further, the elasticity parameter of the target tissue may include an elasticity coefficient. Under the same shear wave, the larger the elastic coefficient is, the smaller the displacement of the target tissue is caused; conversely, the smaller the elastic modulus, the greater the displacement of the target tissue is caused.

In one embodiment of the present application, based on the previously described ultrasound imaging system 10, the shear wave vibrator 106 vibrates, thereby driving the probe 100 to vibrate to produce a wave perpendicular to the probe 100. When the probe 100 contacts the target tissue, the target tissue can be transmitted with shear waves. The shear wave may provide a thrust force to the target tissue in the propagation direction, under which the target tissue is displaced or deformed, and due to the elasticity of the target tissue itself, rebounds after the displacement or deformation. Therefore, based on the shear wave, the second ultrasonic wave is simultaneously emitted. The method can acquire the rebound of the target tissue under the influence of the shear wave, thereby determining the elastic parameters of the target tissue. In the embodiment of the application, the probe is driven to vibrate through vibration of the vibrator, and shear waves generated by the vibration are transmitted to target tissues. Simultaneously, a second ultrasonic wave is transmitted, and a second ultrasonic echo signal is received. Therefore, the morphological change of the target tissue under the pushing of the shear wave can be recorded through the second ultrasonic echo signal, and the elastic parameter of the second area of the target tissue can be accurately determined. Of course, it is also possible to transmit a push pulse to the target tissue to generate a shear wave according to the acoustic radiation force, further transmit a second ultrasonic wave to the target tissue to track the shear wave propagating in the target region, receive a second ultrasonic echo signal, and determine the elastic parameter of the second region of the target tissue according to the second echo signal.

506. The ultrasound image, the acoustic attenuation image and the elasticity parameter are displayed.

After the ultrasound image, the acoustic attenuation map, and the elastic parameter are obtained, the ultrasound image, the acoustic attenuation map, and the elastic parameter may be displayed in a display.

Illustratively, as shown in fig. 18, the ultrasound image, the acoustic attenuation image, and the elasticity parameter are simultaneously displayed in the display. Optionally, the acoustic attenuation parameters may also be displayed. Optionally, a label map of the second region may also be displayed.

In the present application, the ultrasound image, the acoustic attenuation image and the elasticity parameter, which may be a parameter of a second region in the target tissue, may be displayed simultaneously. Therefore, the elasticity parameter of the local part of the target tissue can be displayed more intuitively based on the ultrasonic image and the sound attenuation image. The operator can observe the local part of the target tissue more accurately according to the displayed ultrasonic image, the acoustic attenuation image and the elastic parameter.

The foregoing detailed description of the ultrasound imaging system and the ultrasound imaging method provided in the present application also provides another ultrasound imaging system and an ultrasound imaging method. Referring to fig. 19, a block diagram of another possible ultrasound imaging system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure is shown.

Fig. 19 is a block diagram illustrating an ultrasound imaging system 190 according to an embodiment of the present application. The ultrasound imaging system 190 may include a probe 1900, wherein the probe 1900 may be an ultrasound probe, a transmit/receive selection switch 1901, a transmit/receive sequence controller 1902, a processor 1903, a display 1904. In some embodiments, the ultrasound imaging system 190 further comprises a vibrator 1906. The transmit/receive sequence controller 1902 may excite the ultrasound probe 1900 to transmit ultrasound waves to the target tissue, and may also control the ultrasound probe 1900 to receive ultrasound echoes returned from the target tissue, thereby obtaining ultrasound echo signals/data. The processor 1903 processes the ultrasound echo signals/data to obtain tissue-related parameters of the target tissue and an ultrasound image. Ultrasound images obtained by the processor 1903 may be stored in the memory 1905 and these ultrasound images may be displayed on the display 1904.

Of these, the vibrator 1906 is an optional component. Vibrator 1906 may be installed inside probe 1900 or may be installed outside probe 1900. Vibrator 1906 can be used to generate vibrations of a particular waveform, i.e., shear waves, and vibrate probe 1900. The vibrator 1906 may be used to generate vibration when acquiring elastic parameters and drive the probe 1900 to vibrate. In some embodiments, the shear wave is generated directly from the acoustic radiation force without a vibrator for use in shear wave elastography or elastometry, etc.

The components included in the ultrasound imaging system provided in the embodiment of the present application and the functions of the components are similar to those of the ultrasound imaging system in fig. 1, and are not described herein again.

Referring to fig. 20, another ultrasound imaging method provided by the present application is described in detail below based on the ultrasound imaging system of fig. 19, and the ultrasound imaging method provided by the embodiment of the present application is applied to an ultrasound imaging system 190, and is particularly suitable for an ultrasound imaging system 190 including a touch display screen, for inputting a touch screen operation by touching the touch display screen. The ultrasound imaging system 190 may generate elasticity images using the ultrasound echo data, may generate conventional ultrasound B images or doppler images using the ultrasound echo data, and so on. The ultrasonic imaging method embodiment in the application comprises the following steps:

2001. a first ultrasonic wave is transmitted to the target tissue, and a first ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue is received, so that a first ultrasonic echo signal is obtained.

2002. And acquiring an ultrasonic image of the target tissue according to the first ultrasonic echo signal.

2003. An acoustic attenuation image of a first region in a target tissue is acquired.

It should be noted that steps 2001 to 2003 in the embodiment of the present application are similar to steps 501 to 503 in fig. 5, and are not described again here.

2004. The ultrasound image and the acoustic attenuation image are displayed.

In an embodiment of the present application, after the ultrasound image and the acoustic attenuation image are acquired, the ultrasound image and the acoustic attenuation image are displayed in a display.

Specifically, the ultrasound image and the acoustic attenuation image displayed in the embodiment of the present application may be as shown in fig. 21, which includes an ultrasound image 2101 and an acoustic attenuation image 2102. It can be understood that the sound attenuation image and the ultrasound image are fused to obtain and display a first fused image, which is a superposition of the ultrasound image and the sound attenuation image shown in fig. 21. In addition, the sound attenuation image and the ultrasound image can be displayed separately, i.e., 2101 and 2102 in fig. 21 are displayed separately, which is not described herein again.

In the embodiment of the application, the sound attenuation image is further acquired and displayed on the basis of the ultrasonic image, and compared with the method for displaying only the sound attenuation parameters, the sound attenuation characteristic of the target tissue can be displayed more intuitively through the topographic form of the sound attenuation image. And based on the ultrasonic image, the operator can observe the sound attenuation image and the ultrasonic image of the target tissue more clearly.

In an optional embodiment of the present application, when the sound attenuation image and the ultrasound image are fused to obtain a first fused image, and the first fused image is displayed, the sound attenuation parameters may also be displayed simultaneously. Illustratively, as shown in fig. 22, it is possible to display in the display: "acoustic attenuation parameters: XXX ".

In an alternative embodiment of the present application, in addition to acquiring and displaying the ultrasound image and the acoustic attenuation image, the elasticity parameter may be acquired and displayed. The elastic parameter may be an instantaneous elastic parameter or a shear wave elastic parameter. Taking the instantaneous elastic parameter as an example, specifically, the vibrator vibrates and drives the probe to vibrate and generate shear waves. The shear waves are transmitted to the target tissue, and second ultrasonic waves are transmitted to a second area in the target tissue, and second ultrasonic echoes returned from the second area are received, so that second ultrasonic echo signals are obtained. And acquiring the elasticity parameters of the second region according to the second ultrasonic echo signal, and displaying the elasticity parameters of the second region in a display.

More specifically, the steps of obtaining the elastic parameters and displaying the ultrasound image, the acoustic attenuation image and the elastic parameters are similar to the steps 504 to 506 in fig. 5, and are not repeated here. In the embodiment of the application, the elastic parameters are further displayed on the basis of displaying the ultrasonic image and the sound attenuation image, so that the sound attenuation image and the elastic parameters can be more intuitively displayed, and the ultrasonic image is combined, so that the observation of the sound attenuation image and the elastic parameters of the target tissue is more facilitated.

In the several embodiments provided in the present application, it should be understood that the disclosed system, apparatus and method may be implemented in other manners. For example, the above-described apparatus embodiments are merely illustrative, and for example, the division of the units is only one logical division, and other divisions may be realized in practice, for example, a plurality of units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be omitted, or not executed. In addition, the shown or discussed mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection may be an indirect coupling or communication connection through some interfaces, devices or units, and may be in an electrical, mechanical or other form.

The units described as separate parts may or may not be physically separate, and parts displayed as units may or may not be physical units, may be located in one place, or may be distributed on a plurality of network units. Some or all of the units can be selected according to actual needs to achieve the purpose of the solution of the embodiment.

In addition, functional units in the embodiments of the present application may be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit may exist alone physically, or two or more units are integrated into one unit. The integrated unit can be realized in a form of hardware, and can also be realized in a form of a software functional unit.

The integrated unit, if implemented in the form of a software functional unit and sold or used as a stand-alone product, may be stored in a computer readable storage medium. Based on such understanding, the technical solution of the present application may be substantially implemented or contributed to by the prior art, or all or part of the technical solution may be embodied in a software product, which is stored in a storage medium and includes instructions for causing a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device) to execute all or part of the steps of the method according to the embodiments of the present application. And the aforementioned storage medium includes: various media capable of storing program codes, such as a usb disk, a removable hard disk, a Read-Only Memory (ROM), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

In practical applications, the target tissue may be a human body, an animal, or the like. The target tissue may be a face, a spine, a heart, a uterus, a pelvic floor, or the like, or may be other parts of a human tissue, such as a brain, a bone, a liver, or a kidney, and the application is not limited in particular.

The above description is only for the specific embodiments of the present application, but the scope of the present application is not limited thereto, and any person skilled in the art can easily conceive of the changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present application, and shall be covered by the scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An ultrasound imaging method, comprising:

transmitting a first ultrasonic wave to a target tissue, and receiving a first ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue to obtain a first ultrasonic echo signal;

acquiring an ultrasonic image of the target tissue according to the first ultrasonic echo signal;

determining acoustic attenuation parameters of a first region in the target tissue according to amplitude values of various preset depth ranges of the first ultrasonic echo signal in the first region; or sending a third ultrasonic wave to the first region, receiving a third ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue to obtain a third ultrasonic echo signal, and determining the sound attenuation parameter of the first region according to the amplitude value of the third ultrasonic echo signal in each preset depth range in the first region;

wherein determining the acoustic attenuation parameter for the first region comprises: dividing the first area into a plurality of preset depth ranges, determining the change rate of each preset depth range according to the amplitude value of each preset depth range, and calculating the change rate of each preset depth range to obtain the sound attenuation parameter of the first area;

carrying out color coding on the sound attenuation parameters to obtain a sound attenuation image of the first area;

transmitting shear waves to the target tissue, transmitting second ultrasonic waves to a second region in the target tissue, and receiving second ultrasonic echoes returned from the second region to obtain second ultrasonic echo signals, wherein the shear waves are used for vibrating the target tissue;

determining an elasticity parameter of a second region in the target tissue from the second ultrasound echo signal;

displaying the ultrasound image, the acoustic attenuation image, and the elasticity parameter.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein said acquiring an ultrasound image of said target tissue from said first ultrasound echo signal comprises:

determining each pixel value of the target tissue from the first ultrasound echo signal;

determining a gain for each pixel value of the target tissue from the acoustic attenuation parameters;

and obtaining the ultrasonic image according to each pixel value and the corresponding gain of the target tissue.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the ultrasound image is a grayscale image, and the acquiring the ultrasound image of the target tissue from the first ultrasound echo signal comprises:

determining each pixel value of the target tissue according to the first ultrasonic echo signal and preset weight information;

and obtaining the gray-scale image according to each pixel value of the target tissue.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the ultrasound image comprises a color doppler flow image, and wherein the acquiring the ultrasound image of the target tissue from the first ultrasound echo signal comprises:

and performing color Doppler blood flow imaging according to the first ultrasonic echo signal to obtain the color Doppler blood flow image.

5. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, further comprising:

fusing the acoustic attenuation image with the ultrasonic image to obtain a first fused image;

and displaying the first fusion image.

6. The method of any one of claims 1-4, wherein prior to said transmitting a second ultrasound wave to said target tissue and transmitting a shear wave to said target tissue, said method further comprises:

receiving input parameters for the target tissue, and determining the second area in the target tissue according to the input parameters;

or the like, or, alternatively,

and determining the second area from the target tissue according to a preset rule.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, further comprising:

generating a label map corresponding to the second area;

fusing the label map to the ultrasonic image to obtain a second fused image;

and displaying the second fused image.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, wherein the acoustic attenuation parameters include: at least one of an average acoustic attenuation value, a maximum acoustic attenuation value, and a minimum acoustic attenuation value for the first region.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1-4, further comprising:

and acquiring a propagation track map or a propagation route curve graph of the shear wave according to the second ultrasonic echo signal, and displaying the propagation track map or the propagation route curve graph.

10. An ultrasound imaging method, comprising:

determining acoustic attenuation parameters of a first region in the target tissue according to amplitude values of various preset depth ranges of the first ultrasonic echo signal in the first region; or sending a third ultrasonic wave to the first region, and receiving a third ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue to obtain a third ultrasonic echo signal; determining the acoustic attenuation parameters of the first area according to the amplitude values of the third ultrasonic echo signal in each preset depth range in the first area;

displaying the ultrasound image and the acoustic attenuation image.

11. The method of claim 10, further comprising:

and displaying the elasticity parameter.

12. The method of claim 10, the acquiring an ultrasound image of the target tissue from the first ultrasound echo signal, comprising:

13. The method of any one of claims 10-12, wherein the ultrasound image comprises a color doppler flow image, and the acquiring the ultrasound image of the target tissue from the first ultrasound echo signal comprises:

14. An ultrasound imaging system, comprising: the device comprises a probe, a transmitting/receiving sequence circuit, a processor and a display;

the transmitting/receiving sequence circuit is used for exciting the probe to generate a first ultrasonic wave and exciting the probe to generate a third ultrasonic wave;

the probe is used for transmitting the first ultrasonic wave to a target tissue and receiving a first ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue to obtain a first ultrasonic echo signal; the probe is also used for sending a third ultrasonic wave to the first region in the target tissue and receiving a third ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue to obtain a third ultrasonic echo signal;

the processor is further configured to determine, before acquiring the sound attenuation image of the first region, sound attenuation parameters of the first region according to amplitude values of the first ultrasonic echo signal in each preset depth range in the first region; or, the processor is further configured to determine the acoustic attenuation parameter of the first region according to the amplitude value of each preset depth range of the third ultrasonic echo signal in the first region;

the processor is configured to acquire an ultrasound image of the target tissue according to the first ultrasound echo signal, and perform color coding on the acoustic attenuation parameter to acquire an acoustic attenuation image of the first region; the transmitting/receiving sequence circuit is also used for exciting the probe to generate a second ultrasonic wave;

15. The ultrasound imaging system of claim 14, wherein the processor is specifically configured to:

16. The ultrasound imaging system of claim 14, wherein the ultrasound image is a grayscale image, and the processor is specifically configured to:

17. The ultrasound imaging system of claim 14, wherein the ultrasound image comprises a color doppler flow image, the processor being configured to:

18. The ultrasound imaging system of claim 14,

the processor is further configured to fuse the acoustic attenuation image with the ultrasound image to obtain a first fused image;

the display is further used for displaying the first fusion image.

19. The ultrasound imaging system of claim 14,

the processor is further configured to receive input parameters for the target tissue prior to the transmitting of the second ultrasound waves to the target tissue and the transmitting of the shear waves to the target tissue, and determine the second region in the target tissue according to the input parameters;

or the like, or, alternatively,

20. The ultrasound imaging system of claim 14,

the processor is further configured to generate a marker map corresponding to the second region, and fuse the marker map to the ultrasound image to obtain a second fused image;

the display is further used for displaying the second fusion image.

21. The ultrasound imaging system of claim 14,

the acoustic attenuation parameters include: at least one of an average acoustic attenuation value, a maximum acoustic attenuation value, and a minimum acoustic attenuation value for the first region.

22. The ultrasound imaging system of any of claims 14-21,

the processor is further configured to obtain a propagation trace graph or a propagation route curve graph of the shear wave according to the second ultrasonic echo signal;

the display is also used for displaying the propagation track graph or the propagation route curve graph.

23. An ultrasound imaging system, comprising: the device comprises a probe, a transmitting/receiving sequence circuit, a processor and a display;

the probe is also used for sending a third ultrasonic wave to the first region in the target tissue and receiving a third ultrasonic echo returned from the target tissue to obtain a third ultrasonic echo signal;

the processor is configured to acquire an ultrasound image of the target tissue according to the first ultrasound echo signal, and perform color coding on the acoustic attenuation parameter to acquire an acoustic attenuation image of the first region;

24. The ultrasound imaging system of claim 23,

the display is also used for displaying the elasticity parameter.

25. The ultrasound imaging system of claim 23, wherein the processor is specifically configured to:

26. The ultrasound imaging system of any of claims 23-25, wherein the ultrasound images include color Doppler flow images,

the processor is specifically configured to perform color doppler blood flow imaging according to the first ultrasonic echo signal, so as to obtain the color doppler blood flow image.