Parametric imaging of Dynamic Vascular Patterns of Focal Liver Lesions in contrast-enhanced ultrasound

The differentiation between benign and malignant Focal Liver Lesions (FLL) plays an important role in diagnosis and therapeutic planning of liver diseases. This differentiation, based on characterization, relies on the observation of the Dynamic Vascular Patterns (DVP) of FLL with respect to surrounding healthy parenchyma, and may be observed during contrast-enhanced ultrasound imaging after a bolus injection. For instance, a hemangioma (i.e. a benign FLL) exhibits a hyper-enhanced signature over time, whereas a metastasis (i.e. a malignant FLL) usually presents hyper-enhanced foci during the arterial phase and becomes hypo-enhanced afterwards. The objective of this work was to develop a new parametric imaging technique, aimed at mapping the DVP signatures into a single image called DVP parametric image, conceived as a diagnostic aid tool for characterizing FLL types. The DVP parametric images were the object of a clinical assessment. The resulting sensitivity and specificity were 97% and 91%, respectively.