Feasibility of inducing and imaging thermal strain for high-risk plaque identification in peripheral arteries using ultrasound arrays

Sheng Wen Huang, K. Kim, R. S. Witte, T. L. Hall, S. Ashkenazi, R. Olafsson, M. O'Donnell

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

3 Scopus citations

Abstract

The feasibility of inducing and imaging thermal strain to identify vulnerable plaques in peripheral arteries based on conventional ultrasound scanners is demonstrated. Vulnerable plaque usually consists of a large lipid-rich core. Because lipid-bearing tissue has a negative temperature dependence of sound speed, whereas water-based tissue has a positive one, thermal strain imaging can differentiate the two different types of tissues with high contrast and thus is useful for plaque composition characterization. In this study, we aimed at inducing thermal strain with the same linear array used for imaging to develop a thermal strain imaging system highly compatible with conventional scanners. Accordingly, we developed a technique to design ultrasound heating patterns based on linear programming. Simulation results based on a linear array (64 elements, 5 MHz, and 0.3-mm element spacing) show that raising the temperature in a region of interest (10 mm wide) 30 mm from the array by 1.9 °C within 1 second is possible even if the tissue is highly attenuating (e.g., 0.8 dB/MHz/cm).

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publication2006 IEEE International Ultrasonics Symposium, IUS
Pages1333-1336
Number of pages4
DOIs
StatePublished - Dec 1 2006

Publication series

NameProceedings - IEEE Ultrasonics Symposium
Volume1
ISSN (Print)1051-0117

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