title: Feasibility study of using high-frequency ultrasonic Nakagami imaging for characterizing the cataract lens in vitro.
abstract: A cataract is a clouding of the crystalline lens that reduces the amount of incoming light and impairs visual perception. Phacoemulsification is the most common surgical method for treating advanced cataracts, and determining the optimal phacoemulsification energy is dependent on measuring the hardness of the lens. This study explored the feasibility of using an ultrasonic parametric image based on the Nakagami distribution to quantify the lens hardness. Young's modulus was measured in porcine lenses in which cataracts had been artificially induced. High-frequency ultrasound at 35 MHz was used to obtain the B-mode and Nakagami images of the cataract lenses. The averaged integrated backscatter and Nakagami parameters were also estimated in the region of interest. The experimental results show that the conventional B-scan and integrated backscatter are inadequate for quantifying the lens hardness, whereas Nakagami imaging allows different degrees of lens hardening to be distinguished both globally and locally based on the concentration of fiber coemption therein.
authors.affiliation: Division of Mechanics, Research Center for Applied Sciences, Academia Sinica, Taipei 11529, Taiwan, Republic of China.
authors.forename: Po-Hsiang
authors.initials: PH
authors.lastname: Tsui
authors.forename: Chih-Chung
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Huang
authors.forename: Chien-Cheng
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Shyh-Hau
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: K Kirk
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Shung
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002386:Cataract / Q000473:pathology*; D003198:Computer Simulation; D004867:Equipment Design; D005240:Feasibility Studies; D007908:Lens, Crystalline / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D015233:Models, Statistical; D012542:Scattering, Radiation; D013552:Swine; D013997:Time Factors; D014465:Ultrasonics; D014463:Ultrasonography