Clinical applications of three-dimensional power Doppler sonography

High-technology in medical engineering has produced a new dimension in image diagnosis. Integration of the new Doppler technique, power Doppler, has done much to overcome the shortcomings of conventional color Doppler. Advances in high-speed computing have allowed the maximizing of volume data acquisition, processing, display and storage. As a consequence, the use of three-dimensional (3-D) power Doppler sonography has increased substantially in many clinical practices. Its major merit is that it can generate 3-D vascular images like those of digital subtraction angiography or magnetic resonance angiography, but that the examinations can be performed in a small room without radiation exposure. There is no major financial investment in new machinery; examinations can be done with greater flexibility but at less cost. Finally, since the volume data are completely digitized, the examination can be integrated as a part of telemedicine. We anticipate that this maturing technology will soon become routine in patient diagnosis and management.