The dimension of the ultrasound beam and the transducer array are the origin of the slice thickness artifact. This artifact is also called partial volume artifact or volume averaging artifact.

See also Validation.

A partial volume artifact is caused by the size of the image voxel. The loss of resolution is caused by multiple features present in the image voxel. In ultrasound imaging that occurs when the slice thickness is wider than the scanned structure. This artifact is also called slice thickness artifact or volume averaging artifact.

See also Ultrasound Picture.

A voxel is a volume element (volumetric and pixel) representing a value in the three dimensional space, corresponding to a pixel for a given slice thickness. Voxels are frequently used in the visualization and analysis of medical data. The ultrasound pixel intensity is proportional to the signal intensity of the appropriate voxel.

See also Slice Thickness Artifact.