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Musculoskeletal ultrasound
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Musculoskeletal ultrasound is clinical ultrasound used to see the structures of a joint and the fluid that collects inside it, the effusion, in real time. The piece that rests on the skin is called the transducer, and it does two jobs at once: it turns an electrical signal into sound and sends it inward, and then it receives what comes back.
What comes back are echoes. When the sound pulses hit tissues, they reflect, and the machine records three things about each echo: how strong it is, what direction it comes from and when it arrives. That is what it builds the image with. It sends sound inward and builds the image from what bounces back.
There is a trade-off that decides which probe to use. Raising the frequency of the sound gives the image more resolution, that is, more detail, but it penetrates less. That is why a high frequency linear probe is usually used for what lies near the surface, and a low frequency curvilinear probe when you need to reach deeper.
In brief
It is clinical ultrasound that shows the joint and its effusions in real time: the transducer sends and receives the waves, turning an electrical signal into sound.
As the pulses reflect off tissues they produce echoes, and the machine detects their strength, their direction and when they arrive.
It sends sound inward and builds the image from what bounces back.
Raising the frequency increases resolution and reduces penetration: a high frequency linear probe is usually used for superficial structures and a low frequency curvilinear probe for deep ones.
Sources (2)
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingUltrasound Physics and Instrumentation, StatPearlsPublished
- National Center for Biotechnology Information, StatPearls PublishingUltrasound-Guided Arthrocentesis, StatPearlsPublished
This page explains the topic in general terms; it does not tell anyone what treatment to follow.
Updated