Enhancement of ultrasound images using stochastic resonance-based wavelet transform.

Ultrasound diagnostic imaging technique is used to visualize muscles and internal organs, their size, structures and possible pathologies or lesions. The limited soft tissue contrast of ultrasound may lead to problems in characterizing perivascular soft tissues. We develop a technique using stochastic resonance (SR)-based wavelet transform for the enhancement of unclear diagnostic ultrasound images. The proposed method enhances the edges more clearly. The advantages of this method are that it can simultaneously operate both as an enhancement process as well as a noise-reduction operation, and that the method can also optimally enhance an image even if the image noise level is considerable.