Mechanical pulsed ultrasound therapy for modulating neural tissue microenvironments
AssigneeWisconsin Alumni Research Foundation
InventorJohn-Paul Yu
Life of this patent
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Abstract
Short ultrasound pulses or bursts, delivered at intermediate intensity to the target brain tissue transmits acoustic radiation forces into the targeted brain tissue without generating acoustic cavitation and without cellular fractionization. Thus, the present invention exploits the mechanical effects of high-intensity pressure fields only, without cavitation, by optimizing the interaction between acoustic pulses and radiation forces to apply a negative pressure to the brain tissue and degrading the perineuronal nets in the brain tissue and opening the blood-brain barrier.
Claims12
A method for controlled mechanical degradation of an extracellular matrix of brain tissue of a patient, the brain tissue having a cavitation threshold at which cavitation occurs, the method comprising:
- outputting a treatment ultrasound pulse sequence directed at a treatment portion of the extracellular matrix of the brain wherein the treatment ultrasound pulse sequence is at a pulse intensity that is less than the cavitation threshold and at least partially degrades the extracellular matrix of the brain tissue in the treatment portion;
- concurrent with the outputting of the treatment ultrasound pulse sequence, monitoring an amount of mechanical degradation of the extracellular matrix of the brain tissue in the treatment portion;
- concurrent with the outputting of the treatment ultrasound pulse sequence, adjusting the treatment ultrasound pulse sequence based on the monitoring of the amount of mechanical degradation of the extracellular matrix of the brain tissue;
- and
- wherein the ultrasound pulse sequence is comprised of pulses each having a length of less than or equal to 20 us and a duty cycle of less than or equal to 2%.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.