How is 3D/4D Ultrasound Used to Examine the Fetal Heart?
Earlier in these lessons the heart was illustrated as a 3D structure, having the appearance of an actual heart if one were examining it in real life. As the result of 3D/4D technology the ultrasound data that is acquired consists of thousands of 2D images (single slices of bread) that are arranged together in a volume dataset (loaf of bread). This volume dataset can be examined with computer technology to do the following: 1. Recreate 2D slices from any angle within the 3D volume. Using the loaf of bread as an example, the physician can cut the loaf at any angle to obtain a slice (2D). This gives the examiner an unlimited number of 2D images to evaluate. 2. Reconstruct the surface anatomy of the heart by examining thousands of 2D slices at one time. 3. Examine multiple slices of the 2D image simultaneously. 4. Examine the 3D/4D volume datasets using different types of shading. The following sections will illustrate several of these techniques used to evaluate the heart, especially when
Related Questions
- Can the index of myocardial performance be used to detect acute cellular rejection after heart transplantation?
- Is it important to examine gender differences in the epidemiology and outcome of severe heart failure?
- Do commonly used oral antihypertensives alter fetal or neonatal heart rate characteristics?
