Near-infrared diffuse optical characterization of human thyroid using ultrasound-guided hybrid time-domain and diffuse correlation spectroscopies.

Thyroid vascularization and hemodynamics become altered in thyroid pathologies and could thus inform diagnostics, therapy planning, and follow-up. However, the current non-invasive monitoring methods available in clinics lack the necessary sensitivity and/or are impractical for large-scale deployment. As a step towards proposing a new modality, we applied the first platform, to our knowledge, designed to do simultaneous measurements of neck anatomy and thyroid microvascular hemodynamics and metabolism in a single probe placement, integrating state-of-the-art near-infrared spectroscopy techniques and clinical ultrasound.

characterization of the optical and hemodynamic properties of the human sternocleidomastoid muscle through ultrasound-guided hybrid near-infrared spectroscopies.

In this paper, we present a detailedcharacterization of the optical and hemodynamic properties of the human sternocleidomastoid muscle (SCM), obtained through ultrasound-guided near-infrared time-domain and diffuse correlation spectroscopies.A total of sixty-five subjects (forty-nine females, sixteen males) among healthy volunteers and thyroid nodule patients have been recruited for the study. Their SCM hemodynamic (oxy-, deoxy- and total hemoglobin concentrations, blood flow, blood oxygen saturation and metabolic rate of oxygen extraction) and optical properties (wavelength dependent absorption and reduced scattering coefficients) have been measured by the use of a novel hybrid device combining in a single unit time-domain near-infrared spectroscopy, diffuse correlation spectroscopy and simultaneous ultrasound imaging.

The LUCA device: a multi-modal platform combining diffuse optics and ultrasound imaging for thyroid cancer screening.

We present the LUCA device, a multi-modal platform combining eight-wavelength near infrared time resolved spectroscopy, sixteen-channel diffuse correlation spectroscopy and a clinical ultrasound in a single device. By simultaneously measuring the tissue hemodynamics and performing ultrasound imaging, this platform aims to tackle the low specificity and sensitivity of the current thyroid cancer diagnosis techniques, improving the screening of thyroid nodules. Here, we show a detailed description of the device, components and modules.

4D Functional Imaging of the Rat Brain Using a Large Aperture Row-Column Array.

Functional ultrasound imaging (fUS) recently emerged as a promising neuroimaging modality to image and monitor brain activity based on cerebral blood volume response (CBV) and neurovascular coupling. fUS offers very good spatial and temporal resolutions compared to fMRI gold standard as well as simplicity and portability. It was recently extended to 4D fUS imaging in preclinical settings although this approach remains limited and complex.

Radiofrequency ultrasound data acquisition with a 640-element array transducer for strain imaging: Experimental results with phantoms and biological tissue samples.

This paper presents ultrasound elastography results obtained with a 640-element array transducer we have recently developed. This probe allows the acquisition of series of three adjacent imaging planes over time and therefore makes possible the computation of 2-D elastograms, with consideration of out-of-plane motion. In this study, elastography experiments were conducted on phantoms and bovine tissue samples, and compression was manually applied to the media via the hand-held ultrasound transducer.

Specific Ultrasound Data Acquisition for Tissue Motion and Strain Estimation: Initial Results.

Ultrasound applications such as elastography can benefit from 3-D data acquisition and processing. In this article, we describe a specific ultrasound probe, designed to acquire series of three adjacent imaging planes over time. This data acquisition makes it possible to consider the out-of-plane motion that can occur at the central plane during medium scanning, and is proposed with the aim of improving the results of strain imaging.

Capacitive Micromachined Ultrasound Transducers for Interstitial High-Intensity Ultrasound Therapies.

Capacitive micromachined ultrasound transducers (CMUTs) exhibit several potential advantages over conventional piezo technologies for use in therapeutic ultrasound (US) devices, including ease of miniaturization and integration with electronics, broad bandwidth (>several megahertz), and compatibility with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). In this paper, the electroacoustic performance of CMUTs designed for interstitial high-intensity contact US (HICU) applications was evaluated and the feasibility of generating US-induced heating and thermal destruction of biological tissues was studied. One-dimensional CMUT linear arrays as well as a prism-shaped 2-D array composed of multiple 1-D linear arrays mounted on a cylindrical catheter were fabricated.

Quantitative evaluation of atrial radio frequency ablation using intracardiac shear-wave elastography.

Purpose: Radio frequency catheter ablation (RFCA) is a well-established clinical procedure for the treatment of atrial fibrillation (AF) but suffers from a low single-procedure success rate. Recurrence of AF is most likely attributable to discontinuous or nontransmural ablation lesions. Yet, despite this urgent clinical need, there is no clinically available imaging modality that can reliably map the lesion transmural extent in real time.