Abstract: The present disclosure relates to using Surface-Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) for detecting analytes in samples. Uses can include, for example, detection of tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) using SERS, as well as apparatuses and systems to implement such detection methods.

Abstract: Methods, systems and techniques for the accurate measurement of breath-borne biomarkers are disclosed. Such methods, systems and techniques may be used for the purposes of detection and/or measurement in breath samples of biomarkers, e.g., biomarkers relating to a disease or a physiological condition.

Abstract: Methods, systems and techniques for the accurate measurement breath-borne biomarkers are disclosed. Such methods, systems and techniques may be used for the purposes of detection and/or measurement in breath samples of biomarkers.

Abstract: The present disclosure describes systems, methods, and apparatus for a portable and handheld mechanical breath collection device. The mechanical breath collection device collects air from a human subject, filters out saliva from the human subject, and collects aerosolized droplets from the received air via inertial impaction on an impactor surface. A target chemical is then extracted from the collected aerosolized droplets, and analyzed. In this way, a concentration of a target chemical present from the human subject can be determined by the portable and handheld device.

Abstract: The present disclosure describes a single-use microfluidic cartridge that is can be utilized with a portable and handheld breath collection and analysis device to detect a presence of a target chemical in human breath. The cartridge receives an air sample of human breath, processes it to extract the target chemical in solution, and reacts the solution with chemical reagent(s) to determine a concentration level of the target chemical present in the collected breath sample. Additionally, a portion of the collected sample can be contained in a separate reservoir of the cartridge of evidence preservation. The cartridge may further contain a cryptographic computing chip to store information regarding the sample processed within the cartridge.

Abstract: Breath sample systems for use with ventilators are disclosed herein. An example device can include a housing that contains a breath capture module that collects a breath sample from a patient, an input in fluid communication with an expiratory limb of a ventilator and the breath capture module, the input receiving a breath of the patient, an output in fluid communication with the expiratory limb of a ventilator to return the breath to the ventilator, a pump, and a controller that controls the pump to obtain the breath sample by drawing the breath into the input, across the breath capture module, and out of the output.

Abstract: A needle is enhanced in a medical diagnostic ultrasound image. The image intensities associated with a needle in an image are adaptively increased and/or enhanced by compounding from a plurality of ultrasound images. Filtering methods and probabilistic methods are used to locate possible needle locations. In one approach, possible needles are found in component frames that are acquired at the same time but at different beam orientations. The possible needles are associated with each other across the component frames and false detections are removed based on the associations. In one embodiment of needle detection in an ultrasound component frame, lines are found first. The lines are then searched to find possible needle segments. In another embodiment, data from different times may be used to find needle motion and differences from a reference, providing the features in additional to features from a single component frame for needle detection.

Abstract: A needle is enhanced in a medical diagnostic ultrasound image. The image intensities associated with a needle in an image are adaptively increased and/or enhanced by compounding from a plurality of ultrasound images. Filtering methods and probabilistic methods are used to locate possible needle locations. In one approach, possible needles are found in component frames that are acquired at the same time but at different beam orientations. The possible needles are associated with each other across the component frames and false detections are removed based on the associations. In one embodiment of needle detection in an ultrasound component frame, lines are found first. The lines are then searched to find possible needle segments. In another embodiment, data from different times may be used to find needle motion and differences from a reference, providing the features in additional to features from a single component frame for needle detection.

Abstract: Contact pressure from a transducer is controlled in medical diagnostic ultrasound imaging. Rather than measuring pressure directly using a pressure sensor on the transducer, the compression of tissue within the patient may be measured using ultrasound scanning. The desired amount of compression in the region of interest for diagnosis may be obtained. For example in breast imaging, the desired compression for imaging a portion of the breast is compared to compression measured from ultrasound data. Once the desired tissue compression is achieved, the pressure applied by the transducer is maintained while the diagnosis scan occurs. For example, a robotic arm locks or otherwise maintains the pressure during scanning.

Abstract: A method for automatically assessing medical ultrasound (US) image usability, includes extracting one or more features from at least one part of a medical ultrasound image, calculating for each feature a feature score for each pixel of the at least one part of the ultrasound image, and classifying one or more image pixels of the at least one part as either usable or unusable, based on a combination of feature scores for each pixel, where usable pixels have intensity values substantially representative of one or more anatomical structures.

Abstract: A method for automatically assessing medical ultrasound (US) image usability, includes extracting one or more features from at least one part of a medical ultrasound image, calculating for each feature a feature score for each pixel of the at least one part of the ultrasound image, and classifying one or more image pixels of the at least one part as either usable or unusable, based on a combination of feature scores for each pixel, where usable pixels have intensity values substantially representative of one or more anatomical structures.

Abstract: Contact pressure from a transducer is controlled in medical diagnostic ultrasound imaging. Rather than measuring pressure directly using a pressure sensor on the transducer, the compression of tissue within the patient may be measured using ultrasound scanning. The desired amount of compression in the region of interest for diagnosis may be obtained. For example in breast imaging, the desired compression for imaging a portion of the breast is compared to compression measured from ultrasound data. Once the desired tissue compression is achieved, the pressure applied by the transducer is maintained while the diagnosis scan occurs. For example, a robotic arm locks or otherwise maintains the pressure during scanning.