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Acoustic impact of the human skull on transcranial photoacoustic imaging.

Publication ,  Journal Article
Liang, B; Wang, S; Shen, F; Liu, QH; Gong, Y; Yao, J
Published in: Biomedical optics express
March 2021

With balanced spatial resolution, imaging depth, and functional sensitivity, photoacoustic tomography (PAT) hold great promise for human brain imaging. However, the strong acoustic attenuation and aberration of the human skull (∼8 mm thick) are longstanding technical challenges for PAT of the human brain. In this work, we numerically investigated the impacts of the stratified human skull on photoacoustic wave propagation (i.e., the forward model) and PAT image formation (i.e., the inverse model). We simulated two representative transcranial PAT implementations: photoacoustic computed tomography (PACT) and photoacoustic macroscopy (PAMac). In the forward model, we simulated the detailed photoacoustic wave propagation from a point or line source through a digital human skull. The wave attenuation, refraction, mode conversation, and reverberation were thoroughly investigated. In the inverse model, we reconstructed the transcranial PACT and PAMac images of a point or line target enclosed by the human skull. Our results demonstrate that transcranial PAMac suffers mainly from wave reverberation within the skull, leading to prolonged signal duration and reduced axial resolution. Transcranial PACT is more susceptible to the skull's acoustic distortion, mode conversion, and reverberation, which collectively lead to strong image artifacts and deteriorated spatial resolutions. We also found that PACT with a ring-shaped transducer array shows more tolerance of the skull's adverse impacts and can provide more accurate image reconstruction. Our results suggest that incorporating the skull's geometry and acoustic properties can improve transcranial PAT image reconstruction. We expect that our results have provided a more comprehensive understanding of the acoustic impact of the human skull on transcranial PAT.

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Published In

Biomedical optics express

DOI

EISSN

2156-7085

ISSN

2156-7085

Publication Date

March 2021

Volume

12

Issue

3

Start / End Page

1512 / 1528

Related Subject Headings

  • 5102 Atomic, molecular and optical physics
  • 4003 Biomedical engineering
  • 3212 Ophthalmology and optometry
  • 0912 Materials Engineering
  • 0205 Optical Physics
 

Citation

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ICMJE
MLA
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Liang, B., Wang, S., Shen, F., Liu, Q. H., Gong, Y., & Yao, J. (2021). Acoustic impact of the human skull on transcranial photoacoustic imaging. Biomedical Optics Express, 12(3), 1512–1528. https://doi.org/10.1364/boe.420084
Liang, Bingyang, Shaomeng Wang, Fei Shen, Qing Huo Liu, Yubin Gong, and Junjie Yao. “Acoustic impact of the human skull on transcranial photoacoustic imaging.Biomedical Optics Express 12, no. 3 (March 2021): 1512–28. https://doi.org/10.1364/boe.420084.
Liang B, Wang S, Shen F, Liu QH, Gong Y, Yao J. Acoustic impact of the human skull on transcranial photoacoustic imaging. Biomedical optics express. 2021 Mar;12(3):1512–28.
Liang, Bingyang, et al. “Acoustic impact of the human skull on transcranial photoacoustic imaging.Biomedical Optics Express, vol. 12, no. 3, Mar. 2021, pp. 1512–28. Epmc, doi:10.1364/boe.420084.
Liang B, Wang S, Shen F, Liu QH, Gong Y, Yao J. Acoustic impact of the human skull on transcranial photoacoustic imaging. Biomedical optics express. 2021 Mar;12(3):1512–1528.
Journal cover image

Published In

Biomedical optics express

DOI

EISSN

2156-7085

ISSN

2156-7085

Publication Date

March 2021

Volume

12

Issue

3

Start / End Page

1512 / 1528

Related Subject Headings

  • 5102 Atomic, molecular and optical physics
  • 4003 Biomedical engineering
  • 3212 Ophthalmology and optometry
  • 0912 Materials Engineering
  • 0205 Optical Physics