Ultrasonic imaging is a powerful diagnostic tool available to medical practitioners, engineers and researchers today. Due to the relative safety, and the non-invasive nature, ultrasonic imaging has become one of the most rapidly advancing technologies. These rapid advances are directly related to the parallel advancements in electronics, computing, and transducer technology together with sophisticated signal processing techniques. This book focuses on state of the art developments in ultrasonic imaging applications and underlying technologies presented by leading practitioners and researchers from many parts of the world.

Diagnostic and Therapeutic Ultrasound has recently taken an explosive growth for better safer, economic, mobile and high quality healthcare. This technology is very appealing for medical applications because it is non-ionizing, non-invasive and it is available in most of the medical and clinical facilities. Its low cost, when compared with other medical image modalities, makes it one of the preferred tools for medical monitoring, follow-up and diagnosis. Besides the traditional fields of Cardiology and Obstetrics, where it is extensively used for long time, it has became also very useful in the diagnosis of diseases of the prostate, liver and coronaries and carotids atherosclerosis. However, Ultrasound images present poor quality, very low signal to noise ratio and a lot of artifacts. The extraction of useful information from Ultrasound data for diagnosis is a challenge task that makes this medical image modality a very active field of research. The difficulties are being overcome and novel and advanced methods are being proposed for detection, characterization and segmentation of abnormalities in several organs. In fact, Ultrasound application range is vast, covering almost all organs of the human body, including the brain where Tran-cranial Doppler Ultrasound is very important to assess the brain vasculature. This book presents some of the recent advances in Ultrasound imaging technology covering several organs and techniques in a Biomedical Engineering (BME) perspective. The focus of the book is in the algorithms, methodologies and systems developed by multidisciplinary research teams of engineers and physicians for Computer-Aided Diagnosis (CAD) purposes. Cardiovascular and Cancer, the most common life-threatening diseases in western countries, are two of the most important topics focused in the book. However, other advanced issues are also presented such as Intravascular Ultrasound, 3D US and Ultrasound in Computer-Aided Surgery (CAS). Some chapters are direct contributions from medical research groups where Ultrasound has also received great attention in the last decade. By this, new techniques based on Ultrasound were introduced in the clinical practice for diagnosis and therapeutics, mainly in hospital facilities.

Over the past ten years, innovative technologies have shown that advanced oxidation processes are highly promising when applied to the remediation of polluted water or wastewater as they don’t generate any sludge or solid material of hazardous nature. Advances in Ultrasound Technology for Environmental Remediation reviews the fundamentals of ultrasound technology and the state of the art developments in “ultrasound-based free radical generation” in environmental remediation and pollution prevention. It also presents the challenges of introducing ultrasound technology into large-scale environmental remediation applications and examines the methods used to improve ultrasound technology. Indeed, ultrasonic systems are extremely sensitive and vulnerable to operational parameters which cannot be controlled without a good knowledge and understanding of physical and chemical phenomena. Advances in Ultrasound Technology for Environmental Remediation features the theory and fundamentals of ultrasound technology and discusses its potential as an alternative method in environmental remediation.

This groundbreaking resource offers you exclusive coverage of the latest techniques in diagnostic and therapeutic 3-D ultrasound imaging instrumentation and techniques. Providing a solid overview of potential applications in clinical practice, you find need-to-know details on major diseases, including vascular diseases, breast cancer, cardiac abnormalities and prostate cancer.

While other modalities such as MRI, PET/CT, and MDCT have achieved importance in the field of diagnostic radiology, ultrasound has not stood still. This issue reviews the latest advances in ultrasound technology and provides a basis for its importance in clinical practice.

Evidence suggests that medical innovation is becoming increasingly dependent on interdisciplinary research and on the crossing of institutional boundaries. This volume focuses on the conditions governing the supply of new medical technologies and suggest that the boundaries between disciplines, institutions, and the private and public sectors have been redrawn and reshaped. Individual essays explore the nature, organization, and management of interdisciplinary R&D in medicine; the introduction into clinical practice of the laser, endoscopic innovations, cochlear implantation, cardiovascular imaging technologies, and synthetic insulin; the division of innovating labor in biotechnology; the government- industry-university interface; perspectives on industrial R&D management; and the growing intertwining of the public and proprietary in medical technology.

Improving healthcare and staying healthy is one of the most discussed and important issues in our society. Technology has played and will play an important role in many aspects of the healthcare system, and it offers new and better ways to solve the key health problems of the new century. This book describes valued contributions of technology for improving hospital and home healthcare, and gives a perspective on how they will influence critical aspects of future medical care. It provides an overview and discussion of trends, presents the state-of-the-art of important research areas, and highlights recent breakthrough results in selected fields, giving an outlook on game-changing developments in the coming decades. The material is arranged in 6 parts and a total of 31 chapters. The healthcare areas addressed are: General advances and trends in healthcare technology, diagnostic imaging, integration of imaging and therapy, molecular medicine, medical information technology and personal healthcare.

Now in an updated edition, this is the most comprehensive book on modern ultrasound imaging in assisted reproductive technology (ART) and reproductive medicine. Fully revised and expanded, it covers emerging technologies possible with the improvement in ultrasound equipment. 3-D monitoring of ovarian follicles, bidirectional vibrant color and Doppler, and improved 3-D and 4-D imaging of reproductive structures are discussed. MRI-guided ultrasound procedures are covered, and comparisons of 3-D imaging with MRI imaging for uterine anomalies is reviewed with an emphasis on the advantages of 3-D performed in the gynecologist’s office, and as a less expensive modality. The overall approach of the original edition is maintained, starting with ultrasound safety and technique and diagnosis of the ovary, uterus and fallopian tubes (both normal and pathologic), followed by both male and female infertility and ART treatments and procedures. Ultrasound monitoring of follicular development, the endometrium, and as an aid in embryo transfer to maximize IVF success rates are reviewed. Topics new to this edition include updated information on the diagnosis of benign and malignant adnexal masses, 3-D follicle monitoring, and the diagnosis of adenomyosis and endometriosis, including deep inseminated endometriosis. Additionally, the evaluation of endometrial receptivity, the use of contrasts for fallopian tube patency, controversies regarding septate uterus versus arcurate uterus with the use of 3-D ultrasound, and 3-D ultrasound with saline infusion sonogram and early pregnancy ultrasound are all discussed. An excellent resource for reproductive medicine and ART specialists, gynecologists and ultrasonographers alike, Ultrasound Imaging in Reproductive Medicine, Second Edition covers all that clinicians need to know about the role of ultrasound, from the first time a woman comes into the clinic for treatment, including ART, to early pregnancy monitoring. See better, do ART better.

Innovative and Emerging Technologies in the Bio-marine Food Sector: Applications, Regulations, and Prospects presents the use of technologies and recent advances in the emerging marine food industry. Written by renowned scientists in the field, the book focuses primarily on the principles of application and the main technological developments achieved in recent years. It includes technological design, equipment and applications of these technologies in multiple processes. Extraction, preservation, microbiology and processing of food are extensively covered in the wide context of marine food products, including fish, crustaceans, seafood processing waste, seaweed, microalgae and other derived by-products. This is an interdisciplinary resource that highlights the potential of technology for multiple purposes in the marine food industry as these technological approaches represent a future alternative to develop more efficient industrial processes. Researchers and scientists in the areas of food microbiology, food chemistry, new product development, food processing, food technology, bio-process engineers in marine based industries and scientists in marine related areas will all find this a novel resource. - Presents novel innovative technologies in the Bio-marine food sector, including principles, equipment, advantages, disadvantages, and future technological prospects - Explores multi-purpose uses of technologies for extraction, functional food generation, food preservation, food microbiology and food processing - Provides industrial applications tailored for the marine biological market to foster new innovative applications and regulatory requirements

This book addresses the future development of ultrasound in food processing, covering both High Power (material altering) and Low Power (non-destructive testing) applications. Leading work is presented for a non-expert audience, so that people in industry and academia can make informed decisions about future research and the adoption of ultrasound techniques. It will be of particular interest to food manufacturing personnel responsible for process development, engineering and research. It will be invaluable for scientists and technologists involved in active ultrasound research and instrument manufacture.