scholarly journals Transcranial Focused Ultrasound Generates Skull-Conducted Shear Waves: Computational Model and Implications for Neuromodulation

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hossein Salahshoor ◽  
Mikhail G. Shapiro ◽  
Michael Ortiz
Keyword(s):  
Focused Ultrasound ◽  
Soft Tissues ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Shear Waves ◽  
Element Model ◽  
Potential Method ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Auditory Responses ◽  
Shear Compliance ◽  
Established Technique

ABSTRACTFocused ultrasound (FUS) is an established technique for non-invasive surgery and has recently attracted considerable attention as a potential method for non-invasive neuromodulation. While the pressure waves generated by FUS in this context have been extensively studied, the accompanying shear waves are often neglected due to the relatively high shear compliance of soft tissues. However, in bony structures such as the skull, acoustic pressure can also induce significant shear waves that could propagate outside the ultrasound focus. Here, we investigate wave propagation in the human cranium by means of a finite-element model that accounts for the anatomy, elasticity and viscoelasticity of the skull and brain. We show that, when a region on the frontal lobe is subjected to FUS, the skull acts as a wave guide for shear waves, resulting in their propagation to off-target structures such as the cochlea. This effect helps explain the off-target auditory responses observed during neuromodulation experiments and informs the development of mitigation and sham control strategies.

scholarly journals Mechanics Of Ultrasonic Neuromodulation In A Mouse Subject

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hossein Salahshoor ◽  
Hongsun Guo ◽  
Mikhail G. Shapiro ◽  
Michael Ortiz
Keyword(s):  
Pressure Wave ◽  
Focused Ultrasound ◽  
Shear Waves ◽  
Element Model ◽  
Wave Pattern ◽  
Promising Tool ◽  
Sensory Effects ◽  
The Subject ◽  
Sensory Responses ◽  
The Brain

AbstractUltrasound neuromodulation (UNM), where a region in the brain is targeted by focused ultrasound (FUS), which, in turn, causes excitation or inhibition of neural activity, has recently received considerable attention as a promising tool for neuroscience. Despite its great potential, several aspects of UNM are still unknown. An important question pertains to the off-target sensory effects of UNM and their dependence on stimulation frequency. To understand these effects, we have developed a finite-element model of a mouse, including elasticity and viscoelasticity, and used it to interrogate the response of mouse models to focused ultrasound (FUS). We find that, while some degree of focusing and magnification of the signal is achieved within the brain, the induced pressure-wave pattern is complex and delocalized. In addition, we find that the brain is largely insulated, or ‘cloaked’, from shear waves by the cranium and that the shear waves are largely carried away from the skull by the vertebral column, which acts as a waveguide. We find that, as expected, this waveguide mechanism is strongly frequency dependent, which may contribute to the frequency dependence of UNM effects. Our calculations further suggest that off-target skin locations experience displacements and stresses at levels that, while greatly attenuated from the source, could nevertheless induce sensory responses in the subject.

scholarly journals Safety evaluation of a clinical focused ultrasound system for neuronavigation guided blood-brain barrier opening in non-human primates

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonios N. Pouliopoulos ◽  
Nancy Kwon ◽  
Greg Jensen ◽  
Anna Meaney ◽  
Yusuke Niimi ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Blood Brain Barrier ◽  
Safety Profile ◽  
Focused Ultrasound ◽  
Multiple Case Study ◽  
Brain Barrier ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Blood Brain ◽  
Multiple Case ◽  
Bbb Opening

AbstractAn emerging approach with potential in improving the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases and brain tumors is the use of focused ultrasound (FUS) to bypass the blood–brain barrier (BBB) in a non-invasive and localized manner. A large body of pre-clinical work has paved the way for the gradual clinical implementation of FUS-induced BBB opening. Even though the safety profile of FUS treatments in rodents has been extensively studied, the histological and behavioral effects of clinically relevant BBB opening in large animals are relatively understudied. Here, we examine the histological and behavioral safety profile following localized BBB opening in non-human primates (NHPs), using a neuronavigation-guided clinical system prototype. We show that FUS treatment triggers a short-lived immune response within the targeted region without exacerbating the touch accuracy or reaction time in visual-motor cognitive tasks. Our experiments were designed using a multiple-case-study approach, in order to maximize the acquired data and support translation of the FUS system into human studies. Four NHPs underwent a single session of FUS-mediated BBB opening in the prefrontal cortex. Two NHPs were treated bilaterally at different pressures, sacrificed on day 2 and 18 post-FUS, respectively, and their brains were histologically processed. In separate experiments, two NHPs that were earlier trained in a behavioral task were exposed to FUS unilaterally, and their performance was tracked for at least 3 weeks after BBB opening. An increased microglia density around blood vessels was detected on day 2, but was resolved by day 18. We also detected signs of enhanced immature neuron presence within areas that underwent BBB opening, compared to regions with an intact BBB, confirming previous rodent studies. Logistic regression analysis showed that the NHP cognitive performance did not deteriorate following BBB opening. These preliminary results demonstrate that neuronavigation-guided FUS with a single-element transducer is a non-invasive method capable of reversibly opening the BBB, without substantial histological or behavioral impact in an animal model closely resembling humans. Future work should confirm the observations of this multiple-case-study work across animals, species and tasks.

scholarly journals Updated Costs of Uterine Fibroid Treatments Including Focused Ultrasound Surgery

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bijan J. Borah ◽  
Elizabeth A. Stewart
Keyword(s):  
Magnetic Resonance ◽  
Focused Ultrasound ◽  
Treatment Options ◽  
Uterine Fibroids ◽  
Reproductive Age ◽  
Invasive Treatment ◽  
Ultrasound Surgery ◽  
Non Invasive ◽  
Focused Ultrasound Surgery ◽  
Reproductive Age Women

Uterine leiomyomas (fibroids) affect 20–40% of reproductive age women and are the major indication for hysterectomy. Magnetic Resonance-guided Focused Ultrasound Surgery (MRgFUS) is a new, potentially disruptive, non-invasive and uterine-sparing treatment option that has been shown to yield similar or better clinical outcomes than other uterine-sparing interventions. However, the costs of MRgFUS and other minimally-invasive treatment options have not been studied using US practice data. This study attempts to fill this void. And since uterine fibroids are the first FDA-approved indication for MRgFUS treatment, this study may also have implications for other indications which are now investigational.

scholarly journals Estimation of Anisotropic Material Properties of Soft Tissue by MRI of Ultrasound-Induced Shear Waves

2020 ◽  
Vol 142 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Charlotte A. Guertler ◽  
Ruth J. Okamoto ◽  
Jake A. Ireland ◽  
Christopher P. Pacia ◽  
Joel R. Garbow ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Soft Tissue ◽  
Focused Ultrasound ◽  
Ex Vivo ◽  
Tissue Sample ◽  
Shear Waves ◽  
Chicken Breast ◽  
Fiber Direction ◽  
Fibrous Materials ◽  
Phase Gradient ◽  
Anisotropic Mechanical Properties

Abstract This paper describes a new method for estimating anisotropic mechanical properties of fibrous soft tissue by imaging shear waves induced by focused ultrasound (FUS) and analyzing their direction-dependent speeds. Fibrous materials with a single, dominant fiber direction may exhibit anisotropy in both shear and tensile moduli, reflecting differences in the response of the material when loads are applied in different directions. The speeds of shear waves in such materials depend on the propagation and polarization directions of the waves relative to the dominant fiber direction. In this study, shear waves were induced in muscle tissue (chicken breast) ex vivo by harmonically oscillating the amplitude of an ultrasound beam focused in a cylindrical tissue sample. The orientation of the fiber direction relative to the excitation direction was varied by rotating the sample. Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) was used to visualize and measure the full 3D displacement field due to the ultrasound-induced shear waves. The phase gradient (PG) of radially propagating “slow” and “fast” shear waves provided local estimates of their respective wave speeds and directions. The equations for the speeds of these waves in an incompressible, transversely isotropic (TI), linear elastic material were fitted to measurements to estimate the shear and tensile moduli of the material. The combination of focused ultrasound and MR imaging allows noninvasive, but comprehensive, characterization of anisotropic soft tissue.

Numerical simulation of thermal properties at Cu/Al interfaces based on hybrid model

2015 ◽  
Vol 32 (3) ◽  
pp. 574-584
Author(s):  
Yunqing Tang ◽  
Liqiang Zhang ◽  
Haiying Yang ◽  
Juan Guo ◽  
Ningbo Liao ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Heat Transfer ◽  
Thermal Properties ◽  
Bonding Temperature ◽  
Dissimilar Materials ◽  
Element Model ◽  
Potential Method ◽  
Interfacial Thermal Resistance ◽  
Interfacial Region ◽  
Fe Model ◽  
Content Type

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to investigate thermal properties at Cu/Al interfaces. Design/methodology/approach – A hybrid (molecular dynamics-interface stress element-finite element model (MD-ISE-FE) model is constructed to describe thermal behaviors at Cu/Al interfaces. The heat transfer simulation is performed after the non-ideal Cu/Al interface is constructed by diffusion bonding. Findings – The simulation shows that the interfacial thermal resistance is decreasing with the increase of bonding temperature; while the interfacial region thickness and interfacial thermal conductivity are increasing with similar trends when the bonding temperature is increasing. It indicates that the higher bonding temperature can improve thermal properties of the interface structure. Originality/value – The MD-ISE-FE model proposed in this paper is computationally efficient for interfacial heat transfer problems, and could be used in investigations of other interfacial behaviors of dissimilar materials. All these are helpful for the understanding of thermal properties of wire bonding interface structures. It implies that the MD-ISE-FE multiscale modeling approach would be a potential method for design and analysis of interfacial characteristics in micro/nano assembly.

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