University of Washington

Other

Nihon Kohden Corporation

Insight, Inc.

Diagnostics Ultrasound Corporation

Skisonics Corporation

Kirk Watson Beach

Yongmin Kim

Peter K Purdy

Siddhartha Sikdar

David J Phillips

John Kansky

Joan E Sanders

Katheryn J Allyn

Timothy Myers

Ellen L Lee

Daniel S Harrison

Daniel C Abrahamson

Santosh Zachariah

Gerald J McMorrow

Robert E Fischer

William Louis Barnard

Mitsuhiro Oura

Katherine G Brown

Barbrina Dunmire

John Kucewicz

Melani I Plett

Michael J Caps

Thomas A Furness

John Overbeck

Brain motion monitoring systems and methods are disclosed that can detect interpret and/or display normal and abnormal brain motions. The devices and methods can detect Cerebrovascular Stenosis and provide for Noninvasive Intracranial Pressure Measurement.

Method and apparatus to screen for and monitor cerebrovascular stenosis and for noninvasive intracranial pressure measurement

The disclosed subject matter related to methods and apparatus for determining brain swelling in a patient as well as predicting an increase in intracranial pressure in the patient. The apparatus can include a transducer such as an ultrasound transducer communicatively connected to a controller via wires or via wireless communications device(s). A monitor and/or alarm device can be provided to notify a practitioner when the controller has determined brain swelling is occurring and/or when an imminent increase in intracranial pressure is likely to occur.

Apparatus and methods for detecting increase in intracranial pressure

A real-time signal processing technique for ultrasonic imaging of tissue vibrations for localizing the source of a bruit in a 2D image with respect to the anatomy and/or for obtaining simultaneous information about vibrations and the underlying blood flow. The bruit can be quantitatively assessed using an ensemble of ultrasound echoes. Signal processing enables estimation of wall displacement and the display of time-resolved vibration spectrum. Vibrations are detected and color-coded according to their amplitude and frequency and overlaid on the B-mode and/or color-flow image in real time. Proposed vibration imaging algorithms use data acquired during conventional ultrasonic color-flow imaging and the clutter signal, normally suppressed in color-flow imaging, to detect and characterize tissue vibrations. Three vibration imaging algorithms based on parametric modeling of vibrations and other criteria distinguish between clutter, blood flow, and vibrations. The techniques are usable to detect, locate, image, and quantitatively grade stenoses in blood vessels.

Ultrasonic technique for assessing wall vibrations in stenosed blood vessels

Changes in the volume of residual limbs on which prosthetic sockets are worn can be measured based on bioimpedance measurements along one or more segments of the limb. A current at an appropriate frequency (e.g., in the range from 1 kHz to 1 MHz) is injected at two current electrodes that contact the skin of the residual limb. The voltage at the voltage electrodes disposed between the current electrodes is measured and using an appropriate model, the change in the segmented volume of the limb can be determined during periods of different activity and at different times during the day. This information can be used for assessing the fit of the socket and can also provide a feedback signal for automatically controlling volume management devices, to ensure a more comfortable fit when the volume of the limb is changing.

Measurement and use of in-socket residual limb volume change data for prosthetic fitting

Tissue Pulsatility Imaging (TPI) is an ultrasonic technique developed to measure tissue displacement or strain in the brain due to blood flow over the cardiac and respiratory cycles. Such measurements can be used to facilitate the mapping of brain function as well as to monitor cerebral vasoreactivity. Significantly, because tissue scatters ultrasound to a greater extend than does blood, using ultrasound to measure tissue displacement or strain in the brain is easier to implement than using ultrasound to measure blood flow in the brain. Significantly, transcranial Doppler sonography (TCD) has been used to measure blood flow in the brain to map brain function and monitor cerebral vasoreactivity; however, TCD can only acquire data through the three acoustic windows in the skull, limiting the usefulness of TCD. TPI is not so limited.

Ultrasonic tissue displacement/strain imaging of brain function

An ultrasound based technique for detecting and imaging vibrations in tissue caused by eddies produced during bleeding through punctured arteries or from organs. A clutter signal, normally suppressed in conventional color flow imaging, is employed to detect and characterize local tissue vibrations, to detect internal bleeding in an image, or as an audible or palpable signal, or a readout. Using a tissue vibration image, the origin and extent of vibrations relative to the underlying anatomy and blood flow can be visualized in real time, enabling measurements of vibration amplitude, frequency, and spatial distribution. Bleeding rate can be determined from the frequency and amplitude of the vibrations. Signal processing algorithms usable to identify tissue vibrations from an ensemble of 2D ultrasound data include those based on phase decomposition, spectral estimation using eigendecomposition, and spectral estimation using autoregressive modeling for isolating vibrations from clutter, blood flow, and noise.

Transcutaneous localization of arterial bleeding by two-dimensional ultrasonic imaging of tissue vibrations

Phase of each transducer element of a high intensity focused (HIFU) transducer array is controlled to compensate for phase change introduced by varying velocity through differing tissue along a path towards a treatment volume. The echo of a specific harmonic of ultrasound pulses of moderate intensity and less than HIFU intensity are used to measure the propagation path transit time of each HIFU transducer element that will converge in a treatment volume through nonhomogeneous tissue. The moderate intensity is outside the linear region between molecular velocity fluctuations and pressure fluctuations. Thus, specific harmonic echoes are distributed in all directions from the treatment volume. Temporal delay in the specific harmonic echoes provide a measure of the propagation path transit time to transmit a pulse that will converge on the treatment volume.

Method for determining phase advancement of transducer elements in high

Continued bleeding into a pocket or hematoma in the cranium could exert pressure on the brain which would move it relative to the cranium to force the brain stem into the medulla oblongata to arrest breathing. Such brain micromovement is detected by projecting bursts of ultrasound into one or both of the temple areas of the cranium or into the medulla oblongata, and the readout of echoes received from different depths is displayed on a screen. The readout of the echoes indicates continued microshifts of the brain relative to the cranium. To differentiate microshifts of the brain relative to the cranium caused by continued intracranial bleeding as distinguished from pulsations of the brain relative to the cranium caused by supply of blood to the brain from the heart and return of blood from the brain to the heart, the timing of the bursts of ultrasound into the cranium is synchronized with the pulse indicated by a heart pulse monitor.

Method for detecting brain microhemorrhage

Apparatus for tracking the motion of subcutaneous body parts such as tendons in the carpal tunnel of the wrist by use of an ultrasonic sensor, and supplying signals from such sensor to a computer for comparison with reference data in a memory and utilizing the output of the computer to drive a readout such as a visual display or printing of text corresponding to motions of the subcutaneous body parts such as tendons in the carpal tunnel effected by movement of the fingers as in simulated typing. Alternatively, the movement of other subcutaneous body parts such as facial muscles can be sensed, and signals generated from the sensor can be transmitted to a computer for processing to actuate or control apparatus such as an artificial limb or a motorized wheelchair.

Process and apparatus for computerizing translation of motion of

A pulse Doppler system for determining blood flow velocity in a blood vessel in a body, in particular the carotid artery. A sample region covering a section of the artery is investigated, using two spaced transmitters, one with a frequency of 3 MHz and the other with a frequency of 4.5 MHz. The received echo beams are then processed to determine the component blood velocities for each frequency. The two component values are then resolved into a true blood flow velocity for the sample region. That information is used to produce a color-coded velocity map of the artery, which may be conveniently displayed to the operator.

Vector Doppler system for stroke screening

An ultrasonic pulse-echo medical device for determining the angular heading and magnitude of the velocity of blood flowing through a blood vessel by transmitting a pulsed ultrasonic beam from a single transmitting transducer and receiving echoes from sample volumes along such beam by a plurality of ultrasound receiving transducers. Independent motions in the same sample volume, such as those of a moving vessel wall and the motion of blood flowing through the blood vessel, can be separately analyzed and displayed.

Vector doppler medical devices for blood velocity studies

Quadrature phase signals (I and Q) from a pulsed Doppler medical instrument are analyzed to detect phase changes of consecutive echoes from tissue at a depth of interest. Such phase changes are analyzed to determine tissue displacement. Relative displacements at different depths are examined to detect tissue expansion and contraction. The area of the uterus of a pregnant female can be scanned and the frequency of tissue displacement or expansion and contraction examined to determine pulsations due to blood supplied by the fetal heart and/or pulsations due to blood supplied by the maternal heart. Conventional M-mode or B-mode images can be colorized differently for different frequencies of tissue displacement.

Growing community of inventors

Seattle, WA, United States of America

Kirk Watson Beach