Efficient array design for sonotherapy

New linear multi-row, multi-frequency arrays have been designed, constructed and tested as fully operational ultrasound probes to produce confocal imaging and therapeutic acoustic intensities with a standard commercial ultrasound imaging system. The triple-array probes and imaging system produce high quality B-mode images with a center row imaging array at 5.3 MHz and sufficient acoustic power with dual therapeutic arrays to produce mild hyperthermia at 1.54 MHz. The therapeutic array pair in the first probe design (termed G3) utilizes a high bandwidth and peak pressure, suitable for mechanical therapies. The second multi-array design (termed G4) has a redesigned therapeutic array pair which is optimized for a high time-averaged power output suitable for mild hyperthermia applications. The 'thermal therapy' design produces more than 4 W of acoustic power from the low-frequency arrays with only a 10.5 degrees C internal rise in temperature after 100 s of continuous use with an unmodified conventional imaging system or substantially longer operation at lower acoustic power. The low-frequency arrays in both probe designs were examined and contrasted for real power transfer efficiency with a KLM model which includes all lossy contributions in the power delivery path from system transmitters to the tissue load. Laboratory verification was successfully performed for the KLM-derived estimates of transducer parallel model acoustic resistance and dissipation resistance, which are the critical design factors for acoustic power output and undesired internal heating, respectively.     

The feasibility of interstitial ultrasound hyperthermia.

One of the most promising ways to increase the efficacy of brachytherapy is to combine it with hyperthermia. In this paper, the feasibility of using ultrasound transducers as interstitial hyperthermia sources was investigated. The ultrasound output of eight cylindrical transducers (diameter 1 mm and length 25 mm) was studied. It was found that many of these transducers were able to generate between 2 and 3 W of acoustic energy at the frequency of 9.5 MHz. The ultrasound field emitted radially was well collimated and extended the full length of the transducer. In vitro perfused liver and kidney experiments showed that an array of four transducers placed in brachytherapy catheters up to a maximum spacing of 20 mm in a square pattern could induce therapeutic temperatures. Also, the effect of flow rate into the organs and catheter cooling were investigated. These results showed that interstitial ultrasound sources are potentially the most promising way of generating therapeutic temperatures through standard interstitial radiation therapy catheters.     

Effect of ethanol injection on cavitation and heating of tissues exposed to high-intensity focused ultrasound

Cavitation activity and temperature rise have been investigated in a tissue-mimicking material and excised bovine liver treated with ethanol and insonated with a 0.825 MHz focused acoustic transducer. The acoustic power was varied from 1.3 to 26.8 W to find the threshold leading to the onset of inertial cavitation. Cavitation events were quantified by three independent techniques: B-mode ultrasound imaging, needle hydrophone measurements and passive cavitation detection. Temperature in or near the focal zone was measured by thermocouples embedded in the samples. The results of this study indicate that the treatment of tissue phantoms and bovine liver samples with ethanol reduces their threshold power for inertial cavitation. This in turn leads to a sudden rise in temperature in ethanol-treated samples at a lower acoustic power than that in untreated ones. The analysis of passive cavitation detection data shows that once the threshold acoustic power is reached, inertial cavitation becomes a major contributor to acoustic scattering in ethanol-treated phantoms and bovine liver samples as compared to control. This study opens up the possibility of improved tumor ablation therapy via a combination of percutaneous ethanol injection and high-intensity focused ultrasound.     

基于虚拟仪器技术的聚焦超声换能器电声转换效率自动测试系统

聚焦超声换能器是超声治疗设备的核心部件,电声转换效率是衡量其性能重要指标之一,实际工作中常以电声转换特性来确定治疗系统的工作频率和驱动参数,这对其测试系统的准确性、效率和便捷性提出很高的要求。为此,构建一套自动测试系统,采用基于定向耦合器的电功率计来测量换能器的输入电功率;运用辐射力天平测量换能器输出声功率;基于虚拟仪器技术开发上位机自动测试软件,实时采集和处理测量数据。基于所开发的自动测试系统,测试换能器在不同频率和驱动功率下的电声转换效率,采用变异系数对系统的稳定性进行分析,并与人工测试方法作对照。结果表明,测试系统具有较好的准确性,且单次测试时间可缩短5倍以上,在驱动功率分别为10、20和30 W情况下,自动测试系统(变异系数分别为4.06%、4.31%、4.65%)比人工测试(变异系数分别为4.14%、4.69%、5.83%)更稳定,满足测试系统应用需求。     

一种用于神经刺激研究的触屏控制小型超声发生器

超声发生器是研究超声刺激的重要工具,但是目前并无可供选择的专用设备。目前实验室所用超声发生器通常都用多台通用仪器搭建而成,体积大,操作复杂。本文设计了一种用于神经刺激研究的小型超声发生器,用触屏作为控制界面,方便刺激参数的输入和修改;独立的E类末级功放非常小巧,可接近换能器放置,换能器的电抗参数纳入功放从而省去了匹配电路,整机体积进一步缩小。内置的现场可编程门阵列（FPGA）产生脉冲方波,经专门的驱动电路后控制E类功放中MOSFET的通断。测试表明,本文设计的超声发生器产生的波形准确,最高频率可达2 MHz。配接自制的500 kHz换能器,在30 V电源电压下输出功率6.23 W,最大声压达到168.3 kPa,并且还有可提升的空间。该发生器体积小,操作方便,电路设计简单,适用于超声神经刺激的研究。     

An experimental high energy therapeutic ultrasound equipment: Design and characterisation

High energy ultrasound equipment for well controlled experimental work on extracorporeal shockwave lithotripsy (ESWL) and hyperthermia has been built. The design of two sets of equipment with operating frequencies of 0.5 and 1.6 MHz, respectively, is described and characterised in terms of measured generated pressure fields. The treatment heads consist of six or seven focused ultrasound transducers. The transducers have a diameter of 50 mm each and are mounted in a hemispherical Plexiglass fixture with a geometrical focus 100 mm from the transducer surfaces. Measurements were performed in a water bath in several planes perpendicular to the central axis of the ultrasound beam, using a miniature hydrophone which was positioned with a computer controlled stepping motor system. Resulting diagram plots show well defined pressure foci, located at the geometrical foci of the transducer units.     

Curvilinear transurethral ultrasound applicator for selective prostate thermal therapy

Thermal therapy offers a minimally invasive option for treating benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) and localized prostate cancer. In this study we investigated a transurethral ultrasound applicator design utilizing curvilinear, or slightly focused, transducers to heat prostatic tissue rapidly and controllably. The applicator was constructed with two independently powered transducer segments operating at 6.5 MHz and measuring 3.5 mm x 10 mm with a 15 mm radius of curvature across the short axis. The curvilinear applicator was characterized by acoustic efficiency measurements, acoustic beam plots, biothermal simulations of human prostate, ex vivo heating trials in bovine liver, and in vivo heating trials in canine prostate (n=3). Each transducer segment was found to emit a narrow acoustic beam (max width <3 mm), which extended the length of the transducer, with deeper penetration than previously developed planar or sectored tubular transurethral ultrasound applicators. Acoustic and biothermal simulations of human prostate demonstrated three treatment schemes for the curvilinear applicator: single shot (10 W, 60 s) schemes to generate narrow ablation zones (13 x 4 mm, 52 degrees C at the lesion boundary), incremental rotation (10 W, 10 degrees/45 s) to generate larger sector-shaped ablation zones (16 mm x 180 degrees sector), and rotation with variable sonication times (10 W, 10 degrees/15-90 s) to conform the ablation zone to a predefined boundary (9-17 mm x 180 degrees sector, 13 min total treatment time). During in vivo canine prostate experiments, guided by MR temperature imaging, single shot sonications (6 W/transducer, 2-3 min) with the curvilinear applicator ablated 20 degree sections of tissue to the prostate boundary (9-15 mm). Multiple adjacent sonications ("sweeping") ablated large sections of the prostate (180 degrees) by using the MR temperature imaging to adjust the power (4-6.4 W/transducer) and sonication time (30-180 s) at each 10 degrees rotation such that the periphery of the prostate reached 52 degrees C before the next rotation. The conclusion of this study was that the curvilinear applicator produces a narrow and penetrating ultrasound beam that, when combined with image guidance, can provide a precise technique for ablating target regions with a contoured outer boundary, such as the prostate capsule, by rotating in small steps while dynamically adjusting the net applied electrical power and sonication time at each position.     

HIFU在牛肝组织中的传播衰减研究

运用辐射压力法研究高强度聚焦超声在牛肝组织中的传播衰减。在室温 2 0℃下 ,利用 4种治疗超声换能器 ,在不同的换能器表面输出声功率下 ,分别测量 2 0、4 0、6 0、80 m m不同厚度新鲜离体牛肝在放入脱气水前后的声辐射力 F、F′,然后计算出声衰减。使用治疗超声换能器 4 ,对于不同辐照深度 ,以声强 ISATA=2 2 .0× 10 3W/cm2、辐照时间 5 s的超声剂量定点辐照新鲜离体牛肝 ,以断层方式剖开后测量凝固性坏死组织体积。研究结果表明 ,对于一个具体的治疗超声换能器 ,在牛肝厚度一定时 ,辐射力穿透率 F′/F法与换能器表面声强及样品近治疗超声换能器表面声窗面积无关。采用最小 F′/F法拟合得出辐射力穿透率随牛肝厚度增加呈指数规律递减 ,且与凝固性坏死组织体积随牛肝厚度 (辐照深度 )增加呈指数规律递减趋势一致。采用最小二乘法拟合得出高度聚集超声在牛肝组织中传播的声衰随频率近似线性增加且呈幂函数关系。这为进一步研究高强度聚焦超声治疗剂量学提供了实验依据     

Thermal contribution of compact bone to intervening tissue-like media exposed to planar ultrasound

The presence of bone in the ultrasound beam path raises concerns, both in diagnostic and therapeutic applications, because significant temperature elevations may be induced at nearby soft tissue-bone interfaces due the facts that ultrasound is (i) highly absorbed in bone and (ii) reflected at soft tissue-bone interfaces in various degrees depending on angle of incidence. Consequently, in ultrasonic thermal therapy, the presence of bone in the ultrasound beam path is considered a major disadvantage and it is usually avoided. However, based on clinical experience and previous theoretical studies, we hypothesized that the presence of bone in superficial unfocused ultrasound hyperthermia can actually be exploited to induce more uniform and enhanced (with respect to the no-bone situation) temperature distributions in superficial target volumes. In particular, we hypothesize that the presence of underlying bone in superficial target volume enhances temperature elevation not only by additional direct power deposition from acoustic reflection, but also from thermal diffusion from the underlying bone. Here we report laboratory results that corroborate previous computational studies and strengthen the above-stated hypothesis. Three different temperature measurement techniques, namely, thermometric (using fibre-optic temperature probes), thermographic (using an infrared camera) and magnetic resonance imaging (using proton resonance frequency shifts), were used in high-power short-exposure, and in low-power extended-exposure, experiments using a 19 mm diameter planar transducer operating at 1.0 and 3.3 MHz (frequencies of clinical relevance). The measurements were performed on three technique-specific phantoms (with and without bone inclusions) and experimental set-ups that resembled possible superficial ultrasound hyperthermia clinical situations. Results from all three techniques were in general agreement and clearly showed that significantly higher heating rates (greater than fourfold) were induced in soft tissue-like phantom materials adjacent (within approximately 5 mm) to a bovine bone as compared to similar experiments without bone inclusions. For low-power long-exposure experiments, where thermal conduction effects are significant, the thermal impact of bone reached at distances > 10 mm from the bone surface (upstream of the bone). Therefore, we hypothesize that underlying bone exposed to planar ultrasound hyperthermia creates a high-temperature thermal boundary at depth that compensates for beam attenuation, thus producing more uniform temperature distribution in the intervening tissue layers. With appropriate technology, this finding may lead to improved thermal doses in superficial treatment sites such as the chest wall and the head/neck.     

Are hydrophones of diameter 0.5 mm small enough to characterise diagnostic ultrasound equipment?

A basic requirement for making measurements of medical ultrasonic fields using small sensors is that the sensor should be smaller than the ultrasonic wavelength. Until recently, the smallest commercially-available PVDF membrane hydrophone sensor had a diameter of 0.5 mm, which is larger that the wavelength in water for frequencies above 3 MHz. Thus many measurements have been made with hydrophones which are strictly too large. In this situation, averaging of the acoustic pressure over the active element can cause an underestimate of the spatial-peak acoustic pressure level. In the past, this error was estimated using theoretical models of the beam profile. However, these models make basic assumptions about both the ultrasonic field and the directional response of the hydrophone--assumptions which may not be valid in all diagnostic ultrasonic fields. GEC-Marconi membrane hydrophones with diameters as small as 0.1 mm have now been used to check these theories for diagnostic fields. This paper shows that the error resulting from the use of too large a hydrophone can be up to three times that predicted by current theories. Possible new correction methods are discussed for use in some situations. In other cases the errors can only be reduced by using these new hydrophones, particularly when the acoustic waveform is distorted by nonlinear propagation.     

Investigation of a large-area phased array for focused ultrasound surgery through the skull

Non-invasive treatment of brain disorders using ultrasound would require a transducer array that can propagate ultrasound through the skull and still produce sufficient acoustic pressure at a specific location within the brain. Additionally, the array must not cause excessive heating near the skull or in other regions of the brain. A hemisphere-shaped transducer is proposed which disperses the ultrasound over a large region of the skull. The large surface area covered allows maximum ultrasound gain while minimizing undesired heating. To test the feasibility of the transducer two virtual arrays are simulated by superposition of multiple measurements from an 11-element and a 40-element spherically concave test array. Each array is focused through an ex vivo human skull at four separate locations around the skull surface. The resultant ultrasound field is calculated by combining measurements taken with a polyvinylidene difluoride needle hydrophone providing the fields from a 44-element and a 160-element virtual array covering 88% and 33% of a hemisphere respectively. Measurements are repeated after the phase of each array element is adjusted to maximize the constructive interference at the transducer's geometric focus. An investigation of mechanical and electronic beam steering through the skull is also performed with the 160-element virtual array, phasing it such that the focus of the transducer is located 14 mm from the geometric centre. Results indicate the feasibility of focusing and beam steering through the skull using an array spread over a large surface area. Further, it is demonstrated that beam steering through the skull is plausible.     

一种监测微波热疗机输出功率变化的方法与装置

目的:针对目前微波热疗机实际输出功率在使用过程中会缓慢衰减,功率测量过程相对复杂等问题,提出了一种新的对微波热疗机实际输出功率进行快速测量的方法,并设计了一套对微波热疗机实际输出功率进行快速监测的装置。方法:利用对称振子天线与截止频率较高的低势垒肖特基二极管组成功率传感器,并将该微波天线置于微波热疗机辐射器前方的某一个固定点,在不同微波功率下测量天线感应、并经过二极管检波后的电压,将得到的功率与电压间的函数关系保存在单片机系统中。利用此函数关系,通过测量二极管检波电压来监测微波热疗机实际输出功率。结果:利用研制的装置,在全功率范围内测量微波热疗机的实际输出功率,测量误差小于5%。结论:微波热疗机的实际输出功率与辐射器前方某固定位置上微波天线感应、并经过二极管检波后得到的电压之间存在一个固定的函数关系。完成该电压与功率的定标后,通过测量二极管检波电压,就可以方便、准确地测量出微波热疗机的输出功率,监测输出功率的变化。这将使技术人员能够及时对微波热疗机输出功率进行修正,从而确保微波热疗剂量的准确性与安全性。     

Relationship between acoustic aperture size and tumor conditions for external ultrasound hyperthermia.

External ultrasound hyperthermia is a very flexible modality for heating deep-seated tumors due to its deep penetration and focusing ability. However, under the constraints of the available acoustic aperture size for the ultrasonic beam, ultrasonic attenuation, as well as other anatomic properties, it may not be able to deliver sufficient ultrasonic energy to heat a large tumor located in a deep region without overheating the normal tissue between the tumor and the aperture. In this work, we employ a simulation program based on the steady-state bioheat transfer equation and an ideal ultrasound power deposition (a cone with convergent/divergent shape) to examine the relationship between the minimal diameter of the acoustic aperture and the tumor conditions. Tissue temperatures are used to determine the appropriate aperture diameter and the input power level for a given set of tumor conditions. Due to the assumed central axis symmetry of the power intensity deposition and anatomic properties, a two-dimensional (r-z) simulation program is utilized. Factors determining the acoustic aperture diameter and the input power level considered here are the tumor size, tumor depth, ultrasonic attenuation in tissue, blood perfusion, and temperature of the surface cooling water. Simulation results demonstrate that tumor size, tumor depth, and ultrasonic attenuation are major factors affecting the aperture diameter of the ultrasonic beam to obtain an appropriate temperature distribution, while blood perfusion and the temperature of the surface cooling water are the minor factors. Plots of the effects of these factors can be used as the guideline for designing an optimal ultrasound heating system, arranging the transducers, and planning further treatments.     

基于高频结构仿真器的微波天线设计及其比吸收率的数值仿真研究

目的:设计一种工作在2.45 GHz频率的新型喇叭天线辐射器。 方法:基于喇叭天线理论,设计辐射器参数,运用高频结构仿真器仿真软件建立圆锥喇叭天线模型,模拟计算人体头部组织的电磁场分布及单位质量电磁能量吸收率。 结果:设计的喇叭天线辐射器在中心频率2.45 GHz下,天线输入端电压驻波比基本小于1.5,回波损耗小于-13 dB,人体头部组织在电磁辐射下的比吸收率最大限值为1.7 W/kg,满足设计的技术指标。 结论:该辐射器有较好的方向特性,输出的微波能量满足体外理疗的要求。     

Bio-acoustic thermal lensing and nonlinear propagation in focused ultrasound surgery using large focal spots: a parametric study

It is well known that the acoustic properties of soft tissue have a dependence on tissue temperature. This is of particular interest in focused ultrasound surgery since the mechanism of action of focused ultrasound surgery is to kill targeted tissue by inducing localized heating by ultrasound absorption, and hence cautery of that tissue. However, the act of localized heating induces a change in the acoustic properties of the targeted tissue and tissue surrounding it. This phenomenon distorts the incoming acoustic wavefront, and has been termed the thermal lens effect for this reason. Furthermore, nonlinear effects in acoustic propagation become non-negligible at the ultrasound intensities required for therapeutic action. This paper examines the importance of the thermal lens effect and nonlinear tissue properties by simulating a variety of clinically applicable phased array transducer configurations that have not yet been appropriately analysed using a full three-dimensional nonlinear treatment of acoustic propagation. The significance of the thermal lens effect is characterized by comparing the simulation of coupled acoustic and thermal propagation with an uncoupled treatment; neglecting thermal lensing typically produces a movement of 1 to 2 mm in the predicted position of the focus towards the transducer. The results also show that the classical methods of acoustic propagation can produce grossly erroneous results under certain clinically relevant transducer configurations and that an acoustic field scan with a hydrophone may not accurately predict therapeutic effect.     

Multisectored interstitial ultrasound applicators for dynamic angular control of thermal therapy

Dynamic angular control of thermal ablation and hyperthermia therapy with current interstitial heating technology is limited in capability, and often relies upon nonadjustable angular power deposition patterns and/or mechanical manipulation of the heating device. The objective of this study was to investigate the potential of multisectored tubular interstitial ultrasound devices to provide control of the angular heating distribution without device manipulation. Multisectored tubular transducers with independent sector power control were incorporated into modified versions of internally cooled (1.9 mm OD) and catheter-cooled (2.4 mm OD) interstitial ultrasound applicators in this work. The heating capabilities of these multisectored devices were evaluated by measurements of acoustic output properties, measurements of thermal lesions produced in ex vivo tissue samples, biothermal simulations of thermal ablation and hyperthermia treatments, and MR temperature imaging of ex vivo and in vivo experiments. Acoustic beam measurements of each applicator type displayed a 35 degrees -40 degrees acoustic dead zone between each independent sector, with negligible mechanical or electrical coupling. Thermal lesions produced in ex vivo liver tissue with one, two, or three sectors activated ranged from 13-18 mm in radius with contiguous zones of coagulation between active sectors. The simulations demonstrated the degree of angular control possible by using variable power levels applied to each sector, variable duration of applied constant power to individual sectors, respectively, or a multipoint temperature controller to vary the power applied to each sector. Despite the acoustic dead zone between sectors, the simulations also showed that the variance from the maximum lesion radius with three elements activated is within 4%-13% for tissue perfusions from 1-10 kg m(-3) s(-1). Simulations of hyperthermia with maximum tissue temperatures of 45 degrees C and 48 degrees C displayed radial penetration up to 2 cm of the 40 degrees C steady-state contour. Thermal characterizations of trisectored applicators in ex vivo and in vivo muscle, using real-time MR thermal imaging, reinforced angular controllability and negligible radial variance of the heating pattern from the applicators, demonstrated effective heating penetration, and displayed MR compatibility. The multisectored interstitial ultrasound applicators developed in this study demonstrated a significant degree of dynamic angular control of a heating pattern without device manipulation, while maintaining heat penetration consistent with previously reported results from other interstitial ultrasound applicators.     

Pressure integrating transducer for oesophageal manometry

A transducer has been designed that gives an integrated measure of the radial pressure profile at a specific level in the oesophagus. The oesophageal pressure is picked up by a semicylinder elastically connected to a transducer housing by means of a slotted semicylinder. The displacement of the semicylinder is sensed by a semiconductor transducer element. The transducer has a linear relation between static pressure and output voltage, flat frequency characteristic and low temperature drift.     

One-dimensional phased array with mechanical motion for conformal ultrasound hyperthermia

This paper investigates the feasibility of conformal heating for external ultrasound hyperthermia by using a phased array transducer with mechanical motion. In this system, a one-dimensional phased array is arranged on a shaft and moves along the shaft, while dynamically focusing on the planning target volume (PTV) with numerous focal spots. To prevent overheating in the intervening tissue between the skin and the PTV, the shaft and the phased array are rotated together to enlarge the acoustical window. With the purpose of conformal heating, the power deposition of the PTV is constructed by combinations of the focal spots and an iterative gradient descent method is then used to determine an optimal set of power weightings for the focal spots. Different tumour shapes are evaluated and the simulation results demonstrate that the volume percentage of the PTV with temperatures higher than 43 degrees C is over 95%. The overheating volume outside the PTV is less than 25% of the PTV. This method provides good conformal heating for external ultrasound hyperthermia. The concept of combining electrical focusing and mechanical motion has the advantages of both enlarging the acoustic window and providing dynamic focusing ability, which is essential for successful conformal heating.     

水听器式便携超声参数测量系统的研制

目的：开发了一套测量声输出参数的系统，为进一步研制适用于军事计量巡检工作的便携式仪器奠定基础。方法：采用水听器作为换能器，采集超声信号存空间声场焦平面上一点的声压波形。通过对声压波形的参数进行数值运算，得到所关心的超声声输山参数。结果：能够在误差允许的范围内测量出主要的声输出参数。结论：该方法切实可行，得到的数据可重复性好。