The association between human blood clot analogue computed tomography imaging, composition, contraction, and mechanical characteristics

Background<br/>Clot composition, contraction, and mechanical properties are likely determinants of endovascular thrombectomy success. A pre-interventional estimation of these properties is hypothesized to aid in selecting the most suitable treatment for different types of thrombi. Here we determined the association between the aforementioned...

Coupling Two Ultra-high-Speed Cameras to Elucidate Ultrasound Contrast-Mediated Imaging and Therapy

Ultrasound contrast-mediated medical imaging and therapy both rely on the dynamics of micron- and nanometer-sized ultrasound cavitation nuclei, such as phospholipid-coated microbubbles and phase-change droplets. Ultrasound cavitation nuclei respond non-linearly to ultrasound on a nanosecond time scale that necessitates the use of ultra-high...

Real-Time Coded Excitation Imaging Using a CMUT-based Side Looking Array for Intravascular Ultrasound

Intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) is a well-established diagnostic method that provides images of the vessel wall and atherosclerotic plaques. We investigate the potential for phased-array IVUS utilizing coded excitation (CE) for improving the penetration depth and image signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). It is realized on a new experimental...

Securing Implantable Medical Devices Using Ultrasound Waves

Modern Implantable Medical Devices (IMDs) are vulnerable to security attacks because of their wireless connectivity to the outside world. One of the main security challenges is establishing trust between the IMD and an external reader/programmer in order to facilitate secure communication. Numerous device-pairing schemes have been proposed to...

Opening of endothelial cell–cell contacts due to sonoporation

Ultrasound insonification of microbubbles can locally increase vascular permeability to enhance drug delivery. To control and optimize the therapeutic potential, we need to better understand the underlying biological mechanisms of the drug delivery pathways. The aim of this in vitro study was to elucidate the microbubble-endothelial cell...

Shadow-free motorized capsule enables accurate beam positioning and sectorized OCT imaging of the esophagus

In this study, we demonstrate a 12x36 mm motorized capsule for OCT imaging of the esophagus. The capsule produces unobstructed images by using a distal reflector design, thus avoiding shadow caused by the motor wires. The motor synchronous control enables three working modes: circumferential imaging, angular sector imaging and accurate beam...

High-Resolution Imaging of Intracellular Calcium Fluctuations Caused by Oscillating Microbubbles

Ultrasound insonification of microbubbles can locally enhance drug delivery, but the microbubble–cell interaction remains poorly understood. Because intracellular calcium (Ca_i ²⁺) is a key cellular regulator, unraveling the Ca_i ²⁺ fluctuations caused by an oscillating microbubble provides crucial...

Motorized capsule for shadow-free OCT imaging and synchronous beam control

We demonstrate a tethered motorized capsule for unobstructed optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging of the esophagus. By using a distal reflector design, we avoided the common shadow artifact induced by the motor wires. A synchronous driving technique features three types of beam-scanning modes of the capsule, i.e., circumferential beam...

Real-time photoacoustic assessment of radiofrequency ablation lesion formation in the left atrium

In interventional electrophysiology, catheter-based radiofrequency (RF) ablation procedures restore cardiac heart rhythm by interrupting aberrant conduction paths. Real-time feedback on lesion formation and post-treatment lesion assessment could overcome procedural challenges related to ablation of underlying structures and lesion gaps. This...

Combined Confocal Microscope and Brandaris 128 Ultra-High-Speed Camera

Controlling microbubble-mediated drug delivery requires the underlying biological and physical mechanisms to be unraveled. To image both microbubble oscillation upon ultrasound insonification and the resulting cellular response, we developed an optical imaging system that can achieve the necessary nanosecond temporal and nanometer spatial...

Re^3 glass a reduce/reuse/recycle strategy

The applicability of glass in structures is continuously ascending, as the transparency and high compressive strength of the material render it the optimum choice for realizing diaphanous structural components that allow for light transmittance and space continuity. The fabrication boundaries of the material are constantly stretching: visible...

A 2D Ultrasound Transducer with Front-End ASIC and Low Cable Count for 3D Forward-Looking Intravascular Imaging: Performance and Characterization

Intravascular ultrasound is an imaging modality used to visualize atherosclerosis from within the inner lumen of human arteries. Complex lesions like chronic total occlusions require forward-looking intravascular ultrasound (FL-IVUS), instead of the conventional side-looking geometry. Volumetric imaging can be achieved with 2D array...

Systemic view on reuse potential of building elements, components and systems: comprehensive framework for assessing reuse potential of building elements

The physical impact of the increasing building mass in industrial and developing parts of the world is undeniable. In Europe, the building industry accounts for 38 percent of the total waste production, 40 percent of the CO2 emissions and 50 percent of all natural resources used within the building sector. (EIB 2015) Such negative impact of the...

Combined optical sizing and acoustical characterization of single freely-floating microbubbles

In this study we present a combined optical sizing and acoustical characterization technique for the study of the dynamics of single freely-floating ultrasound contrast agent microbubbles exposed to long burst ultrasound excitations up to the milliseconds range. A co-axial flow device was used to position individual microbubbles on a...