At the 2008 RSNA meeting, Toshiba America Medical Systems (Tustin, Calif.) introduced two new advances for ultrasound imaging of the breast: MicroPure, an algorithm that aids in the detection of microcalcifications, and the Dynamic Micro Slice transducer for breast imaging, which enhances imaging of superficial structures and helps identify lesions.

“MicroPure is an adapted filter we put onto the image to burn out bright echoes so we can better visualize calcifications,” Erin Owen, Toshiba senior manager for clinical marketing in ultrasound, explains. “Ultrasound has never been really good at looking at microcalcifications. MicroPure puts a color on it to bring out the brighter echoes.”

Owen says the technique aids in the biopsy of microcalcifications, which can be a time-consuming and laborious process. “Calcifications are often cancerous, but there’s no way to tell without a stereotactic biopsy,” she notes. “The procedure can take up to two hours, and it’s not very pleasant. With MicroPure, we can do an ultrasound-guided biopsy and be done in 15 to 20 minutes.”

Carey Weiss, MD, medical director of the Comprehensive Breast Care Center at Mercy Hospital, Chicago, Ill., has been using MicroPure for close to a year. He notes, “We like to use ultrasound for calcifications because it’s so much easier to go after them on an ultrasound than to have the patient lie on her stomach for two hours. When we have a case that we think is a good candidate for biopsy, we’ll use ultrasound.”

In July of this year, Toshiba further enhanced its ultrasound offerings with the introduction of Precision Imaging software for the Aplio^TM XG ultrasound system. The multiresolution signal-processing technology evaluates images line by line, then incorporates information from adjacent lines to enhance the image further.

“Precision Imaging offers a much clearer signal for structure boundaries,” Owen says. “In breast imaging, we look for irregular margins for a lesion, or if it’s a cystic structure, we look to see if it’s truly fluid filled. With Precision Imaging, we can see all the variations within a cyst, which helps to differentiate between cysts and lesions and eliminates false positives for a better, more clear diagnosis.”

Weiss also uses Precision Imaging, which “cleans up the cysts well,” he notes. “With complicated cysts, Precision Imaging helps us be sure of what we’re looking at; it’s another useful tool in ultrasound evaluation of breast lesions.”