A novel sound-blocking structure based on the muffler principle for rib-sparing transcostal high-intensity focused ultrasound treatment

Large-Volume Hyperthermia for Safe and Cost-Effective Targeted Drug Delivery Using a Clinical Ultrasound-Guided Focused Ultrasound Device

Lyso-thermosensitive liposomes (LTSLs) are specifically designed to release chemotherapy agents under conditions of mild hyperthermia. Preclinical studies have indicated that magnetic resonance (MR)-guided focused ultrasound (FUS) systems can generate well-controlled volumetric hyperthermia using real-time thermometry. However, high-throughput clinical translation of these approaches for drug delivery is challenging, not least because of the significant cost overhead of MR guidance and the much larger volumes that need to be heated clinically. Using an ultrasound-guided extracorporeal clinical FUS device (Chongqing HAIFU, JC200) with thermistors in a non-perfused ex vivo bovine liver tissue model with ribs, we present an optimised strategy for rapidly inducing (5-15 min) and sustaining (>30 min) mild hyperthermia (ΔT <+4°C) in large tissue volumes (≤92 cm³). We describe successful clinical translation in a first-in-human clinical trial of targeted drug delivery of LTSLs (TARDOX: a phase I study to investigate drug release from thermosensitive liposomes in liver tumours), in which targeted tumour hyperthermia resulted in localised chemo-ablation. The heating strategy is potentially applicable to other indications and ultrasound-guided FUS devices.

Patient-Specific 3-Dimensional Model for High-Intensity Focused Ultrasound Treatment Through the Rib Cage: A Preliminary Study

OBJECTIVES

The purpose of this study was to develop a patient-specific 3-dimensional model for high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment through the rib cage using patient data.

METHODS

Experimental testing to derive parameters used in defining the amount of energy and alteration needed in treatment protocols for upper abdominal disorders under the rib cage was performed. Reconstructed rib cage models based on patient data, tissue-mimicking material phantoms, and magnetic resonance imaging-guided HIFU using a multielement phased array transducer were used in the experiments. Changes in the focal temperature, acoustic power, and acoustic pressure distribution were investigated with and without the presence of the rib cage model. An ExAblate system (InSightec Ltd, Tirat Carmel, Israel) was used to sonicate phantoms by varying the target phantom or rib cage model location.

RESULTS

The effect of the rib cage on the acoustic pressure distribution and acoustic power was closely related to the anatomic structures of the ribs. Thermometry revealed that heating at the focus could be controlled by changing either the power or duration of HIFU application to improve the focal temperature change. The focal temperature change was found to be related to the distance between the rib cage model and focus and the shadow area on the transducer elements covered by the rib cage model in the beam path.

CONCLUSIONS

Experimental results suggest that the rib cage model is a valuable and useful tool that can provide realistic human anatomic structures and properties for evaluating the effects of the rib cage on ultrasound propagation.

Treatment of hepatic tumors by thermal versus mechanical effects of pulsed high intensity focused ultrasound in vivo

The purpose of this study is to comparatively assess the thermal versus mechanical effects of pulsed high intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment on hepatic tumors in vivo. Forty-five rabbits with hepatic VX2 tumors were randomly separated into three groups (15 animals per group) before HIFU ablation. The total HIFU energy (in situ) of 1250 J was used for each tumor for three groups. In groups I and II, animals were treated with 1 MHz pulsed ultrasound at 1 Hz pulsed repetition frequency (PRF), 0.5 duty cycle (0.5 s on and 0.5 s off) and10 s duration for one spot sonication. For group II, in addition to HIFU treatment, microbubbles (SonoVue, Bracco, Milan, Italy) were injected via vein before sonication acting as a synergist. In group III, animals were treated with 1 MHz pulsed ultrasound at 10 Hz PRF, 0.1 duty cycle (0.1 s on and 0.9 s off) and 10 s duration for one sonication. The total treatment spots were calculated according to the tumor volume. Tumors were examined with contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CECT) immediately prior to and post HIFU treatment. Histopathologic assessment was performed 3 h after treatment. Our study showed that all animals tolerated the HIFU treatment well. Our data showed that mechanical HIFU could lead to controlled injury in rabbit hepatic tumors with different histological changes in comparison to thermal HIFU with or without microbubbles.