Better known as eSie Touch™ elasticity imaging, the technology is a byproduct of the standard ultrasound exam and is based on initial research from Richard G. Barr, MD, PhD. Barr is professor of radiology at Northeastern Ohio University's College of Medicine and radiologist at Southwoods X-ray and Open MRI in Youngstown, USA. His early findings indicate that elasticity technology has high specificity for the detection of breast lesions. With the potential to reduce breast biopsies - which can be stressful, painful for the patient, and overall very costly - this is truly a breakthrough technology. The imaging technology is offered with the ACUSON Antares™ 5.0 ultrasound system and is part of a comprehensive software package for breast diagnosis.

Click the picture (left) to see a real patient case related to elasticity imaging. Eva Smith, a 49-year-old woman, who regularly gets her annual mammogram, recently had an exam in which a mass was detected in her left breast. Like many women, she feared an invasive biopsy. With the elasticity imaging, her doctors were able to rule out breast cancer by measuring the relative stiffness of tissue.