Ultrasonic Bone Assessment Using the Backscatter Amplitude Decay Constant

Abstract

Ultrasonic backscatter techniques are being developed to detect changes in bone caused by osteoporosis. The present study introduces a new technique that measures the exponential decay in the amplitude of the backscatter signal quantified by a parameter called the backscatter amplitude decay constant (BADC). Measurements were performed on 54 specimens of cancellous bone from 14 human femurs using a 3.5-MHz transducer. Six methods were tested to determine BADC. The recommended method measures the time slope of the natural log of the rectified signal. Measured values of BADC ranged from approximately 0.1 μs^-1 to 0.6 μs^-1. Moderate to strong correlations (Spearman's ρ >0.7) were found between BADC and the density and microstructural characteristics of the specimens determined using X-ray microcomputed tomography. The results of this study suggest that BADC may be able to detect changes in the density and microstructure of cancellous bone caused by osteoporosis and other diseases.

Keywords: Backscatter; Bone; Osteoporosis; Ultrasound.