Validation of an assessment tool for estimation of abdominal aortic aneurysm compression in diagnostic ultrasound

Morten Bo Søndergaard Svendsen; Qasam Mohammed Ghulam; Alexander Hakon Zielinski; Christian Lachenmeier; Jonas Peter Eiberg

doi:10.1016/j.ultras.2021.106484

Validation of an assessment tool for estimation of abdominal aortic aneurysm compression in diagnostic ultrasound

Ultrasonics. 2021 Sep:116:106484. doi: 10.1016/j.ultras.2021.106484. Epub 2021 May 29.

Authors

Morten Bo Søndergaard Svendsen¹, Qasam Mohammed Ghulam², Alexander Hakon Zielinski³, Christian Lachenmeier¹, Jonas Peter Eiberg⁴

Affiliations

¹ Copenhagen Academy for Medical Education and Simulation (CAMES), Teilum, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark.
² Department of Vascular Surgery, Rigshospitalet, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark. Electronic address: qasam.ghulam@gmail.com.
³ Department of Vascular Surgery, Rigshospitalet, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark; Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Blegdamsvej 3B, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark.
⁴ Copenhagen Academy for Medical Education and Simulation (CAMES), Teilum, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark; Department of Vascular Surgery, Rigshospitalet, Blegdamsvej 9, 2100 Copenhagen, Denmark; Department of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Blegdamsvej 3B, 2200 Copenhagen, Denmark.

PMID: 34102524
DOI: 10.1016/j.ultras.2021.106484

Abstract

The study investigated ultrasound (US) transducer push, tantamount to applied transducer pressure, during abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) US scanning in a simulated non-clinical setup. During an assessment of maximal AAA diameter on a three-dimensional print-based AAA phantom, US transducer push varied as much as 2000% (range: 0.52-12.45 kPa) amongst 16 experienced sonographers. The mean transducer push was 5.54 ± 3.91 kPa (CV = 0.71). Deformation of a standardized gel-pad allowed for transducer push calculation based on US images; Young's modulus of the gel-pad was estimated to 44,26 N/m². The method is theoretically validated in a safe and non-clinical environment. Future investigations with the aim of clinical validation of the gel-pad principle on AAA patients are suggested, including the objectification of the magnitude of an eventual transducer push-related error during US AAA diameter measurement.

Keywords: Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm; Diameter measurement; Transducer push; Ultrasound; Ultrasound phantom.