System and method for non-invasive transcranial insonation

Abstract

A system and method for non-invasive transcranial sonothrombolysis of targeted cerebral vasculature that ensures a one-step optimized positioning of ultrasound transducers with respect to the target without a need for reiterative positioning and / or feedback representing quality of insonation. The system includes built-in mounting registration members defined in unique correspondence with chosen external craniological marks of a head which, in turn, unambiguously define the location of the targeted vasculature. Due to such unique correspondence, the mounting registration members are adapted to ensure that transducer arrays of the system are automatically optimally aligned with the target when the system is positioned on the head for sonothrombolysis. In one implementation, the craniological marks are chosen to include left and right otobasion superior and a nasion such as to define a reference plane, and the corresponding registration members are adapted to position the headset of the system at an angle to the reference plane.

Description

[0001] Cross references to related applications [0002] This application claims the rights and priority of U.S. Patent Application No. 13 / 209,385 filed on August 13, 2011 and titled "Non-Invasive Transcranial Ultrasound Apparatus", which in turn requires filing on March 17, 2011 with the title Priority 61 / 453,771 for "Non-Invasive Transcranial Ultrasound Apparatus". This application also claims the rights and priority of the aforementioned U.S. Provisional Application 61 / 453,771. Each of the above-mentioned patent applications is fully incorporated herein by reference. Technical field [0003] The present invention relates to ultrasound equipment and methods, and, more specifically, to a portable ultrasound system with stereotactic features, which is configured to ensure that: once the system is placed on a subject's head, a predefined portion of the cerebrovascular is predictably Accept the effects of sonic waves without the usual feedback from clinicians. Background technique...

AI Technical Summary

Problems solved by technology

However, reliance on and reference to Doppler images is operator-dependent, and, inevitably, different operators place the same US device at different locations on the same head, thereby affecting the resulting transcranial acoustic waves. The reproducibility of action makes a very noticeable difference

[0005] For example, in cases where insonification of a specific clot in a cerebral vessel is required, not only the aforementioned deviations and differences in the three-dimensional (3D) positioning of the US device on the head may result in imprecise insonation of the clot itself, Moreover, the safety of the sonication process itself may have problems

To counter these possibilities, operators are often required to perform additional diagnostic studies, which take even more time

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