Ultrasound-guided nerve block (UGNB) allows anesthesiologists to perform regional anesthesia around peripheral nerves using ultrasound images for visual guidance. Compared to conventional peripheral nerve stimulation techniques, UGNB provides a safer and more effective method to perform regional anesthesia. However, identification of peripheral nerves with ultrasound can often be problematic, especially for inexperienced users. This paper provides an in depth analysis of the difficulties associated with targeting and locating peripheral nerves during UGNB and proposes a real-time image processing solution, in the form of a low-pass persistence filter, which should increase target saliency in ultrasound images.
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