Development of a FPGA-based quantitative ultrasound system for assessing stress-strain properties of Achilles tendon

Achilles tendon (AT) is the most fragile and vulnerable part in human body. Stress-strain properties and shape changing such as cross-sectional area variations of this tendon are important biomechanical properties used clinically for assessing and monitoring surgical repair or postoperative healing progress. However, so far, there are few methods for non-invasively, precisely and quantitatively assessing in vivo AT mechanism. In this study, we develop a quantitative ultrasound system (QUS) based on FPGA aiming at estimating stress-strain properties of AT via evaluating the broadband ultrasound attenuation (BUA) parameter upon different levels of applied stress on the AT.