Patent ID: 8500639

Claim:
A method for imaging viscoelasticity in biological tissue using a dynamically controlled shear wave front produced by an ultrasound imaging system, the method comprising: receiving an indication of a region of interest within the tissue; selecting a shape of the shear wave front to pass through the region of interest; selecting, based on the selected shear wave front shape, a plurality of focus locations within the tissue and a sequence in which to move a shear wave source between the selected focus locations, wherein the sequence includes alternating the shear wave source locations, with respect to one another, between deep and shallow focus locations within the tissue while progressively moving the shear wave source toward a central focus location; transmitting, into the tissue, a series of focused ultrasonic push pulses from a transducer array based on the selected sequence, wherein each push pulse remotely generates a respective shear wave at one of the selected focus locations, and wherein the respectively generated shear waves interact with one another as the shear wave source moves between the focus locations to produce an overall shear wave having the selected shear wave front shape; and imaging, using the transducer array, the shear wave front as it travels through the region of interest.