High-frequency ultrasound imaging can provide exquisite visualizations of tissue to guide minimally invasive procedures.Here,we demonstrate that an all-optical ultrasound transducer,through which light guided by optic...High-frequency ultrasound imaging can provide exquisite visualizations of tissue to guide minimally invasive procedures.Here,we demonstrate that an all-optical ultrasound transducer,through which light guided by optical fibers is used to generate and receive ultrasound,is suitable for real-time invasive medical imaging in vivo.Broad-bandwidth ultrasound generation was achieved through the photoacoustic excitation of a multiwalled carbon nanotube-polydimethylsiloxane composite coating on the distal end of a 300-μm multi-mode optical fiber by a pulsed laser.The interrogation of a high-finesse Fabry–Pérot cavity on a single-mode optical fiber by a wavelength-tunable continuous-wave laser was applied for ultrasound reception.This transducer was integrated within a custom inner transseptal needle(diameter 1.08 mm;length 78 cm)that included a metallic septum to acoustically isolate the two optical fibers.The use of this needle within the beating heart of a pig provided unprecedented realtime views(50 Hz scan rate)of cardiac tissue(depth:2.5 cm;axial resolution:64μm)and revealed the critical anatomical structures required to safely perform a transseptal crossing:the right and left atrial walls,the right atrial appendage,and the limbus fossae ovalis.This new paradigm will allow ultrasound imaging to be integrated into a broad range of minimally invasive devices in different clinical contexts.展开更多
基金the European Research Council(ERC-2012-StG,Proposal 310970 MOPHIM)an Innovative Engineering for Health award from the Wellcome Trust(WT101957)+4 种基金Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council(EPSRC)(NS/A000027/1)the EPSRC and European Union project FAMOS(FP7 ICT,Contract 317744)by National Institute for Health Research University College London Hospitals Biomedical Research Centrethe National Institute for Health Research Bartsthe London Biomedical Research Unit.
文摘High-frequency ultrasound imaging can provide exquisite visualizations of tissue to guide minimally invasive procedures.Here,we demonstrate that an all-optical ultrasound transducer,through which light guided by optical fibers is used to generate and receive ultrasound,is suitable for real-time invasive medical imaging in vivo.Broad-bandwidth ultrasound generation was achieved through the photoacoustic excitation of a multiwalled carbon nanotube-polydimethylsiloxane composite coating on the distal end of a 300-μm multi-mode optical fiber by a pulsed laser.The interrogation of a high-finesse Fabry–Pérot cavity on a single-mode optical fiber by a wavelength-tunable continuous-wave laser was applied for ultrasound reception.This transducer was integrated within a custom inner transseptal needle(diameter 1.08 mm;length 78 cm)that included a metallic septum to acoustically isolate the two optical fibers.The use of this needle within the beating heart of a pig provided unprecedented realtime views(50 Hz scan rate)of cardiac tissue(depth:2.5 cm;axial resolution:64μm)and revealed the critical anatomical structures required to safely perform a transseptal crossing:the right and left atrial walls,the right atrial appendage,and the limbus fossae ovalis.This new paradigm will allow ultrasound imaging to be integrated into a broad range of minimally invasive devices in different clinical contexts.
