Has infrasound been used to image the human body?

Click For Summary
SUMMARY

Infrasound, defined as sound waves below 20 Hz, is not effective for imaging human anatomy due to its long wavelengths, which are unsuitable for capturing detailed structures like those found in lungs or other soft tissues. While ultrasound operates at approximately 10 MHz, allowing for precise imaging by producing multiple data points, infrasound would yield only a single data point, lacking the resolution necessary for medical diagnostics. The human body resonates at frequencies higher than those of larger animals, such as elephants and whales, but infrasound's utility lies more in communication and feedback rather than imaging. Therefore, ultrasound remains the preferred method for medical imaging of human organs.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of acoustic wave properties and their interaction with biological tissues.
  • Knowledge of ultrasound technology and its operational frequency range (10 MHz).
  • Familiarity with the concept of resonance in biological systems.
  • Basic principles of medical imaging techniques.
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the principles of ultrasound imaging and its applications in medical diagnostics.
  • Explore the differences between infrasound and ultrasound in biological contexts.
  • Investigate the effects of infrasound on human physiology and perception.
  • Learn about alternative imaging techniques used by other species, such as echolocation in bats.
USEFUL FOR

Medical professionals, biomedical engineers, acoustics researchers, and anyone interested in the applications of sound in medical imaging and biological studies.

Loren Booda
Messages
3,108
Reaction score
4
Is it possible to scan humans with ultra low frequencies to study medically one's physique?
 
Biology news on Phys.org
one aspect of acoustic waves is that they tend to interact with things on the same order of magnitude of size as them. Infrasonic wave, say 10 Hz, at the speed of sound (340 m/s) are:

340(m/s)/10(1/s) = 34 m

The reason ultrasound (at around 10MHz) works so well is because:

340/10,000,000 = 35 um (that's micrometers) so it can pickup the tissue structures that make up humans.
 
The human body resonates at a frequency greater than that for "elephant" or "whale" infrasound -- perhaps helpful with communication or even brain feedback, if not directly imaging.
 
Loren Booda said:
The human body resonates at a frequency greater than that for "elephant" or "whale" infrasound -- perhaps helpful with communication or even brain feedback, if not directly imaging.

It depends on what cavity you're referring to; the whole human body doesn't have some single natural frequency; it's a complex geometric object full of soft tissues, not a string. For wavelengths on the order of molecular and tissue structures, it's pretty much the same for both humans and elephants. You start talking about a stomach or a lung, of course, and it's a different story. But if you want to image a lung from either an elephant or a human, it will be ultrasound.

infrasound doesn't work for imaging small things:
Even if you've got an infrasonic acoustic wave the order of a lung to transmit and detect for backscatter, it wouldn't detail the lung like an ultrasound does. You'd essentially get one data point representing the lung. With ultrasound, you get several data points representing many pieces of the lung, so you can put an actual image together.
 
Why should humans (or more precisely human organs) alway be the standard? Bats use sound for 'imaging'. Dogs, birds also perceive higher frequencies than humans. What is infra-sonic to one species is ultra-sonic to another.
 
That wiki link may explain what happened in Fatima on 13th October 1917 in another thread in this section.
 

Similar threads

Does Radiation from X-Rays/CT Stay in Body Forever (Risks)?
  • · Replies 47 ·
2
Replies
47
Views
10K
Influenza A H5, an avian flu, first time in a human
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
2K
Medical How is blood volume calculated and measured in the human body?
  • · Replies 8 ·
Replies
8
Views
2K
Human Body and Frequency detection
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
8K
Salt vs Sugar: Which is More Harmful to the Human Body?
  • · Replies 21 ·
Replies
21
Views
4K
Artificial gravity -- consequences for the human body
  • · Replies 15 ·
Replies
15
Views
3K
Medical Using Far-UVC Light To Kill Airborne Human Coronaviruses
  • · Replies 33 ·
2
Replies
33
Views
7K
Medical How nanotechnology has affected treatment of tuberculosis?
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
2K
Human body growth in the absence of a brain
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
2K
How human strength can increase without increased muscle size?
  • · Replies 13 ·
Replies
13
Views
2K