High-intensity focused ultrasound ablation of ex vivo bovine achilles tendon

Small tears in tendons are a common occurrence in athletes and others involved in strenuous physical activity. Natural healing in damaged tendons can result in disordered regrowth of the underlying collagen matrix of the tendon. These disordered regions are weaker than surrounding ordered regions of normal tendon and are prone to re-injury. Multiple cycles of injury and repair can lead to chronic tendinosis. Current treatment options either are invasive or are relatively ineffective in tendinosis without calcifications. High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) has the potential to treat tendinosis noninvasively. HIFU ablation of tendons is based on a currently-used surgical analog, viz., needle tenotomy. This study tested the ability of HIFU beams to ablate bovine tendons ex vivo. Two ex vivo animal models were employed: a bare bovine Achilles tendon (deep digital flexor) on an acoustically absorbent rubber pad, and a layered model (chicken breast proximal, bovine Achilles tendon central and a glass plate distal to the transducer). The bare-tendon model enables examination of lesion formation under simple, ideal conditions; the layered model enables detection of possible damage to intervening soft tissue and consideration of the possibly confounding effects of distal bone. In both models, the tissues were degassed in normal phosphate-buffered saline. The bare tendon was brought to 23 degrees C or 37 degrees C before insonification; the layered model was brought to 37 degrees C before insonification. The annular array therapy transducer had an outer diameter of 33 mm, a focal length of 35 mm and a 14-mm diameter central hole to admit a confocal diagnostic transducer. The therapy transducer was excited with a continuous sinusoidal wave at 5.25 MHz to produce nominal in situ intensities from 0.23-2.6 kW/cm(2). Insonification times varied from 2-10 s. The focus was set over the range from the proximal tendon surface to 7 mm deep. The angle of incidence ranged from 0 degrees (normal to the tissue surface) to 15 degrees . After insonification, tendons were dissected and photographed, and the dimensions of the lesions were measured. Transmission electron micrographs were obtained from treated and untreated tissue regions. Insonification produced lesions that mimicked the shape of the focal region. When lesions were produced below the proximal tendon surface, no apparent damage to overlying soft tissue was apparent. The low intensities and short durations required for consistent lesion formation, and the relative insensitivity of ablation to small variations in the angle of incidence, highlight the potential of HIFU as a noninvasive treatment option for chronic tendinosis.