Evaluation of Currently Available Ultrasonic Techniques and Commercial Ultrasonographic Equipment

摘要

The diagnostic potential of an isolated time-amplitude system and a scanned intensity-modulated ultrasonographic system are compared. The principal objection to an isolated time-amplitude ultrasonographic system is die subjectivity of the data interpretation. Because of this marked subjectivity, an isolated time-amplitude system offers little more than currently available ophthalmic instrumentation except in the special instances cited. Unless the user is aware of this subjectivity and the limitations and shortcomings of existing commercial ultrasonographic equipment, serious diagnostic errors are likely to ensue. Although applications to ophthalmology have been used for illustration, die methodologic problems described apply potentially to all fields of medicine using diagnostic ultrasound.