ARTSENS (R) Orientation Navigation System : A study towards faster arterial stiffness measurements

ARTSENS (R) (ARTerial Stiffness Evaluation for Non-invasive Screening) is a technology for image-free evaluation of carotid artery stiffness with intelligent real time ultrasound signal processing algorithms for arterial wall identification and tracking. However, the influence of the ultrasound probe orientation on the clarity of the artery wall echoes makes measurement a challenge for inexperienced operators. We present an orientation navigation system (ONS), which performs real time tracking of the probe orientation and gives feedback to the user to help take faster readings with more ease for novice ARTSENS (R) operators. An controlled usability study on seven operators demonstrated that the ONS could reduce the average measurement time in ARTSENS (R) by nearly 50%. The usability of the system was rated positive with a score of 75.4/100 and a grading of 8.3/10 by the operators. The ONS system makes ARTSENS (R) easier to operate thus enables it to be used for quick and reliable measurements in vascular screening scenarios.