Molecular imaging using light-absorbing imaging agents and a clinical optical breast imaging system--a phantom study.

Purpose: The aim of the study was to determine the feasibility of using a clinical optical breast scanner with molecular imaging strategies based on modulating light transmission.

Procedures: Different concentrations of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNT; 0.8-20.

Comparative rheology of low- and iso-osmolarity contrast agents at different temperatures.

Background: Several contrast media (CM) are used for diagnostic angiography and coronary percutaneous interventions. Catheter miniaturization allows performance of most diagnostic studies using 4-5 F catheters and interventions using 5-6 F catheters. As a result of catheter lumen downsizing and viscosity of CM, the operators are sometimes required to forcefully inject to produce adequate images.

Numerical modeling of coronary drug eluting stents.

One of the principal therapies considered for the control of in-stent restenosis is the use of drug loaded polymer-coated stents for local delivery. We present two-dimensional and three-dimensional numerical models to study local delivery of drug eluting stents. The impact of various stent and flow parameters on the concentration distribution in the wall are investigated including the effect of the strut size, coating thickness, strut inter-distance and strut embedment in the vascular wall, blood flowing speed and the respective diffusion coefficients in the blood, wall and polymer.

Image based biomechanics of coronary plaque.

In this chapter we present recent developments in the modeling of coronary artery biomechanics. We first introduce the pathology and localization of lesions in the circulatory system. Recent fluid and structural modeling of CAD is presented and discussed.

Advanced contour detection for three-dimensional intracoronary ultrasound: a validation--in vitro and in vivo.

Intracoronary ultrasound (ICUS) provides high-resolution transmural images of the arterial wall. By performing a pullback of the ICUS transducer and three-dimensional reconstruction of the images, an advanced assessment of the lumen and vessel wall morphology can be obtained. To reduce the analysis time and the subjectivity of boundary tracing, automated segmentation of the image sequence must be performed.