Methods and apparatus for uniform transcutaneous therapeutic ultrasound
AssigneePharmasonics, Inc.
InventorsAxel F. Brisken, Robert Zuk, John McKenzie, Mark W. Cowan
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A wide beam ultrasound delivery system providing a uniform exposure field is used to enhance the uptake of injected substances and/or to enhance the transfection of DNA in the tissues of human subject, or reduce the amount of vascular intimal hyperplasia in human subjects following vascular injury.
Claims47
A method of enhancing cellular absorption of a substance delivered into a target region of a patient's body, comprising:
- delivering the substance into the target region;
- applying a uniform field of ultrasound energy across a wide area of the target region, the ultrasound energy being of a type and an amount sufficient to enhance cellular absorption of the substance into the target region;
- and
- the ultrasound energy being of a type and an amount sufficient to enhance transfection of the DNA in the target region, wherein the uniform field comprises
- a field which varies in intensity by at least one of (1) less than 10 dB in a lateral direction across the width of the field, and (2) less than 10 dB in an axial direction across the depth of the target region.
A method of inhibiting vascular intimal hyperplasia, comprising:
- applying a uniform field of ultrasound energy across a wide area of a patient's vasculature, the ultrasound energy being of a type and an amount sufficient to inhibit vascular intimal hyperplasia.
A wide beam uniform field ultrasound energy delivery system, comprising:
- a housing having an opening at a distal end;
- a skin-contact window covering the opening;
- a plurality of ultrasound transducers mounted within the housing;
- and
- an acoustic couplant material in contact with at least one side of the transducers, and in contact with the skin-contact window.
A wide beam uniform field ultrasound delivery system, comprising:
- a housing having an opening at a distal end;
- a skin-contact window covering the opening;
- a two-dimensional array of individual flat-plate transducer elements mounted within the housing;
- and
- an acoustic couplant material in contact with at least one side of each of the individual transducers, and in contact with the skin-contact window.
A wide beam uniform field ultrasound delivery system, comprising:
- a two-dimensional array of individual flat-plate transducer elements which is adapted to be coupled directly to the patient, with no intermediate fluid coupling.
A wide beam uniform field ultrasound delivery system comprising:
- a housing having an opening at a distal end;
- a skin-contact window covering the opening;
- an ultrasound transducer mounted within the housing;
- an acoustic couplant material in contact with at least one side of the transducer, and in contact with the skin-contact window;
- a first adjustable mount connecting the transducer to the interior of the housing, the first adjustable mount adapted to articulate the transducer for back-and-forth movement of a beam of ultrasound energy in a first direction;
- and
- a second adjustable mount connecting the transducer to the interior of the housing, the second adjustable mount adapted to articulate the transducer for back-and-forth movement of the beam of ultrasound energy in a second direction, the second direction being perpendicular to the first direction.
A wide beam uniform field ultrasound delivery system comprising:
- a housing having an opening at a distal end;
- a skin-contact window covering the opening;
- an ultrasound transducer mounted within the housing;
- and
- an acoustic couplant material in contact with at least one side of the transducer, and in contact with the skin-contact window, wherein the transducer is centrally located in the housing and the acoustically reflective surface is disposed around the interior periphery of the housing.
A wide beam uniform field ultrasound delivery system comprising:
- a housing having an opening at a distal end;
- a skin-contact window covering the opening;
- an ultrasound transducer mounted within the housing;
- and
- an acoustic couplant material in contact with at least one side of the transducer, and in contact with the skin-contact window, wherein the acoustically reflective surface is centrally located in the housing and the transducer is disposed around the interior periphery of the housing.
A wide beam uniform field ultrasound delivery system comprising:
- a housing having an opening at a distal end;
- a skin-contact window covering the opening;
- an ultrasound transducer mounted within the housing;
- and
- an acoustic couplant material in contact with at least one side of the transducer, and in contact with the skin-contact window, wherein the transducer further comprises an acoustic refractive material covering the side of the transducer disposed in contact with the acoustic coupling material.
A wide beam uniform field ultrasound delivery system comprising:
- a housing having an opening at a distal end;
- a skin-contact window covering the opening;
- an ultrasound transducer mounted within the housing;
- and
- an acoustic couplant material in contact with at least one side of the transducer, and in contact with the skin-contact window, wherein the skin-contact window has a curved shape to narrow a beam of ultrasound energy passing therethrough.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.