Transcranial Assessment and Visualization of Acoustic Cavitation: Modeling and Experimental Validation

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Acoustic Imaging
• Computational Modeling

Background:

• Microbubble oscillations have therapeutic and diagnostic potential for brain disorders.
• Challenges include non-linear dynamics, small scales, and limited transcranial visualization.
• Current methods hinder optimal use and clinical translation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a framework for assessing and visualizing microbubble oscillations transcranially.
• To overcome limitations in current transcranial imaging and control of microbubble dynamics.
• To improve the clinical applicability of ultrasound-mediated therapies.

Main Methods:

• Integrated ultrasound (US) and MR imaging guided focused ultrasound system (FUS).
• Co-registered high-resolution brain CT for acoustic property derivation.
• 2D/3D Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) simulations of microbubble oscillations and acoustic wave propagation.
• Passive Acoustic Mapping (PAM) refined with variable speed of sound to correct skull aberrations.

Main Results:

• The framework successfully combined numerical simulations with multimodality imaging.
• Refined PAM corrected skull-induced aberrations, significantly improving resolution.
• Simulations incorporating microbubble emissions showed good agreement with experimental PAM data.
• The integrated approach demonstrated enhanced control over nonlinear microbubble dynamics.

Conclusions:

• The developed framework offers a clinically relevant approach for transcranial assessment of microbubble oscillations.
• Improved visualization and control can advance the use of microbubble-based therapies and diagnostics.
• This integrated simulation and imaging method holds promise for future brain disease treatments.