Date of Graduation

5-2021

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Biomedical Engineering

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Biomedical Engineering

Advisor/Mentor

Jensen, Morten

Abstract

Congenital Heart Disease (CHD) is the most common type of congenital disease worldwide. Echocardiography using Doppler ultrasound is typically used to diagnose and monitor CHD; however, it is angle-dependent in nature and as a result is limited in its ability to accurately evaluate ventricular function. Blood Speckle Imaging (BSI) is a novel, angle-independent imaging modality that provides detailed blood flow information and visualization within a given area using speckle-tracking. In this study, velocity-field information obtained from BSI was used to calculate flow parameters such as kinetic energy (KE) and circulation using a custom created MATLAB program. BSI was performed on three pediatric patients: one with a structurally normal heart and two with Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD). Both flow parameters were effectively quantified using the developed program and BSI data. It was observed that the greatest amount of circulation and KE were present in the structurally normal patient compared to both patients with VSD. Additionally, segmental analysis of KE resulted in different values for four quadrants within the flow field, which shows the importance of this analysis in future endeavors. Future work will focus on extending the developed methodology for analyzing left ventricular blood flow patterns using BSI to larger patient populations. Furthermore, additional parameters and characteristics of blood flow will be investigated, and all parameters first quantified in structurally normal hearts for the purposes of establishing new standards to be utilized as a comparative tool to improve the diagnosis and monitoring of children with CHD.

Keywords

Imaging; Cardiovascular; Blood Speckle Imaging; Congenital Heart Disease

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