System and method for ultrasound perfusion imaging

1. An imaging processing method comprising:

processing a plurality of digital images comprising sequential B-Mode ultrasound reflectivity data;

calculating decorrelation trends of autocorrelated data to determine a perfusion level, including fluid flow, through tissue;

reducing noise content in the autocorrelated data using the decorrelation trends; and

forming a visual representation of the perfusion level based on the decorrelation trends.

2. The method claim 1 , wherein the plurality of digital images are captured at a capture rate of 20 frames/sec or higher.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the autocorrelation is calculated using a Spearman correlation, Pearson correlation, or Fourier Transform.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein image data for the plurality of digital images is standardized before autocorrelation.

5. The method of claim 4 , wherein the autocorrelated data is normalized.

6. The method of claim 5 , wherein the decorrelation trend of the autocorrelated data is determined by linear regression, average difference, or overall magnitude change.

7. The method of claim 6 , wherein the autocorrelated data with non-linear trends are processed to determine one or more of period, exponential decay rate, time to local minima, or another measure of decorrelation.

8. The method of claim 7 , wherein the method includes at least 5 frames of sequential B-Mode ultrasound reflectivity data.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising alignment of the plurality of digital images to correct for movement by matching local signal patterns between frames.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein a patch is processed from each image to decrease processing time.

11. The method of claim 10 , further comprising application of thresholds and rescaling to the decorrelation trends before visual representation.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising a logarithmic transformation of the decorrelation trend.

13. The method of claim 12 , wherein the decorrelation trends are mapped to different colour or grayscale values for representation in an image.

14. The method of claim 13 , wherein each digital image of the plurality of digital images is downsampled to a lower resolution to decrease processing time.

15. The method of claim 14 , where in the ultrasound data is high frequency ultrasound with a frequency range greater than 15 MegaHertz.

16. A perfusion imaging system comprising:

a high frequency ultrasound transducer for collecting a plurality of digital images comprising sequential B-Mode ultrasound reflectivity data;

a signal processing unit, operatively connected to the transducer, the signal processing unit configured to calculate decorrelation trends of autocorrelated data to determine a perfusion level, including fluid flow, through tissue;

reducing noise content in the autocorrelated data using the decorrelation trends; and

forming a visual representation of the perfusion level based on the decorrelation trends.

17. A non-transitory computer readable storage medium, comprising executable instructions that when executed by a processor cause the processor to:

process a plurality of digital images comprising sequential B-Mode ultrasound reflectivity data obtained using a micro-ultrasound;

calculate decorrelation trends of autocorrelated data to determine a perfusion level, including fluid flow, through tissue;

reduce noise content in the ultrasound data using the decorrelation trends; and

form a visual representation of the perfusion level based on the decorrelation trends.