Institute of Fundamental Technological Research

Understanding the propagation of acoustic waves through a liquid-perfused porous solid frame- work such as cancellous bone is an important pre-requisite to improve the diagnosis of osteoporosis by ultrasound. In order to elucidate the propagation dependence upon the material and structural properties of cancellous bone, several theoretical models have been considered to date, with Biot-based models demonstrating the greatest potential. This paper describes the fundamental basis of these models and reviews their performance.

Acoustic, Propagation, Bone, Theoretical Model

The anisotropic pore structure and elasticity of cancellous bone cause wave speeds and attenuation in cancellous bone to vary with angle. Previously published predictions of the variation in wave speed with angle are reviewed. Predictions that allow tortuosity to be angle dependent but assume isotropic elasticity compare well with available data on wave speeds at large angles but less well for small angles near the normal to the trabeculae. Claims for predictions that only include angle-dependence in elasticity are found to be misleading. Audio-frequency data obtained at audio-frequencies in air-filled bone replicas are used to derive an empirical expression for the angle-and porosity-dependence of tortuosity. Predictions that allow for either angle dependent tortuosity or angle dependent elasticity or both are compared with existing data for all angles and porosities.