Method and apparatus combining diagnostic ultrasound with therapeutic ultrasound to enhance thrombolysis
First Claim
1. A method of treating a patient suffering from thrombosis, the method comprising:
- positioning a single ultrasound probe proximate a body surface of the patient;
in a diagnostic mode, administering pulsed ultrasound from the single probe to the patient at a first frequency for a first period of time; and
in a therapeutic mode, administering ultrasound from the single probe to the patient at a second frequency for a second period of time to enhance a thrombolytic action of a thrombolytic agent.
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Abstract
A method and apparatus for combining therapeutic pulsed or continuous-wave ultrasound with diagnostic pulsed ultrasound are described. In both a therapeutic mode and in a diagnostic mode, the ultrasound is administered from a single probe to a patient suffering from thrombosis. The ultrasound can have the same or different frequency ranges in the diagnostic and therapeutic modes. The pulsed or continuous-wave ultrasound in the therapeutic mode enhances a lysing effect of a thrombolytic agent. The pulsed ultrasound in the diagnostic mode allows monitoring of blood flow to locate a thrombus, to determine an optimal window to administer the therapeutic pulsed ultrasound, and to detect when recanalization has occurred. If an operator attends the device, a graphical display operates during the diagnostic mode to display an image representative of the blood flow.
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Citations
86 Claims
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1. A method of treating a patient suffering from thrombosis, the method comprising:
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positioning a single ultrasound probe proximate a body surface of the patient;
in a diagnostic mode, administering pulsed ultrasound from the single probe to the patient at a first frequency for a first period of time; and
in a therapeutic mode, administering ultrasound from the single probe to the patient at a second frequency for a second period of time to enhance a thrombolytic action of a thrombolytic agent. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32)
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33. A method of treating a patient suffering from thrombosis, the method comprising:
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positioning a single ultrasound probe proximate a body surface of the patient, the single probe having a diagnostic mode and a therapeutic mode;
in the diagnostic mode, administering a diagnostic ultrasound from the single probe to the patient at a first frequency; and
in the therapeutic mode, administering therapeutic ultrasound from the single probe to the patient at a second frequency to enhance a thrombolytic action of a thrombolytic agent. - View Dependent Claims (34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 41, 42, 43, 44, 45, 46)
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47. A method of treating a patient suffering from thrombosis, the method comprising:
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selecting a region on a body surface of the patient;
placing on the body surface a single ultrasound probe having a plurality of transducer elements arranged in an array, the array defining a plurality of areas within the region;
administering pulsed ultrasound from the ultrasound probe to a first one of the areas during a diagnostic mode and evaluating a window through that first area;
if the window through the first area is not an optimum window, administering the pulsed ultrasound to a second one of the areas in the diagnostic mode and evaluating a window through the second area, at least a portion of the second area including at least a portion of the first area;
repeating the administration of the pulsed ultrasound to another area in the diagnostic mode if prior areas administered with pulsed ultrasound do not substantially include the optimum window, until an area having substantially the optimum window is located; and
administering the ultrasound in the therapeutic mode from the single ultrasound probe through the area having substantially the optimum window. - View Dependent Claims (48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60, 61, 62)
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63. An apparatus to treat a patient suffering from thrombosis, the apparatus comprising:
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a single ultrasound probe structured to transmit pulsed ultrasound in a diagnostic mode, and ultrasound in a therapeutic mode, the ultrasound having a characteristic in the therapeutic mode that is different from a characteristic of the pulsed ultrasound in the diagnostic mode; and
a controller structured to switch the single ultrasound probe between the diagnostic and therapeutic modes and to process ultrasound Doppler signals returned by the single ultrasound probe during the diagnostic mode. - View Dependent Claims (64, 65, 66, 67, 68, 69, 70, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76, 77, 78)
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79. A computer-readable medium whose contents configure a computer system to control treatment of a patient with ultrasound during a therapeutic mode and to provide information concerning blood flow detected by processing Doppler ultrasound signals along an ultrasound beam axis during a diagnostic mode by:
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controlling transmission of the ultrasound during the diagnostic and therapeutic modes through a single probe;
determining blood flow at a plurality of locations along a beam axis of the pulsed ultrasound during the diagnostic mode; and
locating an optimum window through which to transmit the ultrasound in the therapeutic mode according to the blood flow. - View Dependent Claims (80, 81, 82, 83, 84, 85, 86)
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Specification