Color flow Doppler imaging and Doppler spectral analysis of the brain of neonatal dogs

Doppler ultrasonography was performed on the cerebral arteries of 19 neonatal dogs. Vascular structures were identified using anatomic preparations of brains pre-injected with a radiopaque silicone rubber product and cleared using a modified tissue clearing technique. Brain sections were subsequently radiographed or examined under a stereomicroscope. Color flow Doppler imaging was used to facilitate positioning of the Doppler calipers for measurement of peak systolic velocity, minimum diastolic velocity, and resistance index. Blood flow velocities in the internal carotid and middle cerebral arteries were lower when measured in transverse images than in sagittal images. The rostral cerebral arteries could be measured using either plane but values obtained from different locations or using different methods of measurement were statistically different. Blood flow velocities generally increased during the first month after birth. Arterial signals were diphasic with flow throughout diastole. Resistance indices most often were between 0.6 and 0.7 and did not exceed 0.86.