Tissue deformation analysis using a laser based digital image correlation technique.

A laser based technique for planar time-resolved measurements of tissue deformation in transparent biomedical materials with high spatial resolution is developed. The approach is based on monitoring the displacement of micrometer particles previously embedded into a semi-transparent sample as it is deformed by some form of external loading. The particles are illuminated in a plane inside the tissue material by a thin laser light sheet, and the pattern is continuously recorded by a digital camera.

Microtextured surfaces for deep-brain stimulation electrodes: a biologically inspired design to reduce lead migration.

Objective: Hardware-related complications of deep brain stimulation (DBS) surgery have been reported with adverse effects in postoperative electrode migration. We report that the addition of microtextured features to the surface of a DBS-like probe can minimize the extent of electrode migration in ex vivo porcine brain.

Methods: A DBS lead and microtextured strips, mounted with a fiberoptic displacement sensor, were embedded 15-mm deep inside a cadaveric porcine brain through holes on the skull.

Magnetic resonance elastography: a general overview of its current and future applications in brain imaging.

Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) has been developed over the last few years as a non-invasive means of evaluating the elasticity of biological tissues. The presence of the skull has always prevented semeiotic palpation of the brain, but MRE now offers the possibility of "palpating by imaging" in order to detect brain consistency under physiological and pathological conditions. The aim of this article is to review the current state-of-the-art of MRE imaging and discuss its possible future diagnostic applications in neuroscience.