PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an ultrasonic diagnostic system simultaneously measuring IMT (Intima-Media Thickness) values of the anterior wall and the posterior wall of the blood vessel without needing any operators manual work.SOLUTION: An amplitude information processing part 6 calculates echo intensity at a depth and a rate of change of echo intensity at a depth in the depth direction from the amplitude information of ultrasonic echo signals. A phase information processing part 7 calculates moving speed of living tissue and hardness of tissue at a depth from phase information of ultrasonic echo signals. An interest region setting-up part 8 detects blood flow areas 33 based on the echo intensity and the moving speed of living tissue and sets up respective interest regions of the anterior wall 31 and the posterior wall 32 of the blood vessel, A boundary location detecting part 9 detects echo intensity, the rate of change of echo intensity in the depth direction, and locations of the boundary of blood flow-tunica intima and the boundary of tunica media-tunica externa in each of the interest region of the anterior wall 31 and the interest region of the posterior wall 32 outputted from the interest region setting-up part 8.COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT【課題】操作者の手を煩わせることなく血管の前壁および後壁のIMT値を同時に測定することができる超音波診断装置を提供すること。【解決手段】振幅情報処理部6は、超音波エコー信号の振幅情報から深度でのエコー強度と深度でのエコー強度の深さ方向での変化率を求め、位相情報処理部7は、超音波エコー信号の位相情報から生体組織の移動速度と深度での組織の硬さ値を求め、関心領域設定部8は、エコー強度と生体組織の移動速度に基づいて、血管30の血流領域33を検出し、血管の前壁31と後壁32それぞれの関心領域を設定し、境界位置検出部9は、関心領域設定部8が出力した前壁31の関心領域、後壁32の関心領域、それぞれにおいてエコー強度、エコー強度の深さ方向の変化率、組織の硬さ値に基づいて血流-内膜境界位置と中膜-外膜境界位置とを検出する。【選択図】図1
