Focused ultrasound in veterinary medicine

The rising global pet population and increased integration of pets into households over the past five years have significantly increased veterinary caseloads, contributing to higher rates of veterinarian burnout. This has highlighted that current treatment options for pets often fail to support clinical efficiency and animal welfare as they are often high in cost, ineffective, induce adverse side effects, and require excessive time to treat and manage disease. Focused ultrasound is an emerging non-invasive therapeutic technology that addresses these limitations by reducing treatment time, side effects, and costs. It uses sharply focused sound waves to precisely disrupt cellular structures or ablate tissue at a focal point of less than 1 mm, without damaging surrounding tissue. Focused ultrasound is currently used in veterinary clinical trials for the treatment of cancer, specifically lymphomas and soft tissue sarcomas, and pain management, including osteoarthritis. However, Focused ultrasound is expanding its role in veterinary medicine, showing promise for targeted drug delivery and immune system modulation. In comparison to current treatment options for pets, Focused ultrasound minimises side effects, treatment time and cost. This review presents the potential of Focused ultrasound to transform veterinary medicine through a non-invasive, targeted, and adaptable treatment approach. Specifically, we present the mechanisms of action, benefits, and limitations of Focused ultrasound, and its current applications in research, including treatment of cancer, osteoarthritis, immunomodulation, and targeted drug delivery. We also outline the pathway toward integrating Focused ultrasound into mainstream veterinary practice, and the steps needed for broader adoption.