Type:
Educational Exhibit
Keywords:
Calcifications / Calculi, Artifacts, Physics, Ultrasound, Ultrasound physics, Anatomy, Abdomen
Authors:
S. Méndez Garrido1, J. Arce Duran2, A. Talegón Meléndez1; 1Sevilla/ES, 2Seville/ES
DOI:
10.1594/ecr2013/C-2288
Background
From the standpoint of radiologic imaging,
we can define the term artifact as an image we cannot correlate with real anatomical structures.
In ultrasound,
artifacts can produce structures that appear in the image but they are not present anatomically,
although structures which are present anatomically may be completely absent.
But that is not all,
because artifacts can even show structures that are present but incorrect in location.
In our daily practice it is very usual to find them,
and we can say they are a double-edged sword because they can interfere in a correct interpretation of the image,
even they can be very useful to help us to do a precise diagnosis.
Therefore,
there are many reasons to know,
even not necessary with much depth,
the physical bases that are underneath these phenomena.
If we do not exercise often,
we can easily forget,
some of the less unknown artifacts.
The fact is that if we understand,
at least once,
its production mechanism,
it will be much less arduous its evocation in subsequent occasions.
To understanding the differences between the two,
in first place we have to keep in mind their common aspects,
considering that both artifacts are caused by multiple echoes.
We are going to describe below in a precise and concise way,
the production mechanisms that underlie both artifacts.