Ultrasound Imaging Now Possible with Smartphone

April 22, 2009 - 2:10 am | 226 views

Technology.am (Apr. 22, 2009) — Washington University Computer engineers are developing USB-based ultrasound probe technology with a smartphone, which enables a compact, mobile computational platform and a medical imaging device that fits in the palm of a hand.

ultrasound-smartphone William D. Richard and David Zar have made commercial USB ultrasound probes compatible with Microsoft Windows Mobile-based smartphones.

Richard and Zar demonstrated a fully functional smartphone-compatible USB ultrasound probe at Microsoft Research Techfest 2009 in February, and Zar presented the technology at the 2009 World Health Care Congress held in Washington, D.C., from April 14-16.

Now it is possible to build smartphone-compatible USB ultrasound probes for imaging the kidney, liver, bladder, and eyes, endocavity probes for prostate and uterine screenings and biopsies, and vascular probes for imaging veins and arteries for starting IVs and central lines.

Another promising application is for caregivers of patients with Duchene’s Muscular Dystrophy, an incurable degenerative disease that often strikes young boys. The caregiver would only have to do a one-minute scan, transfer the data captured to the clinic, and the results would come back to the caregiver, Zar said.

Zar said the new system will be used to train people in remote areas of the developing world on the basics of gathering data with the phones and sending it to a centralized unit many miles away where specialists can analyze the image and make a diagnosis.

A typical, portable ultrasound device may cost as much as $30,000. Some of these USB-based probes sell for less than $2,000 with the goal of a price tag as low as $500.

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