REFLEX TRANSMISSION IMAGING: VISUALIZATION AND EVALUATION OF CALCULI FOR LITHOTRIPSY

Reflex transmission imaging (RTI) is a method for producing orthographic images that depict focal-plane ultrasonic transmittance.1–4 Unlike conventional transmission imaging methods, which require an opposing pair of transducers, RTI can be implemented using modified B-mode equipment and a bidirectional scan probe. Contemporaneously, an integrated reflection C-scan (IRCS) image can be generated, representing the focal plane reflectivity. The two images are in perfect registration, and reveal complementary information. In this study, we use these methods to image human gallstones and kidney stones in tissue phantoms, both before and after their disintegration by a piezoelectric lithotripter.