Method and apparatus for the non-invasive detection and classification of emboli
First Claim
1. An ultrasonic pulse echo apparatus for detecting an embolus in blood flow, comprising:
- a) at least on ultrasound transducer for transmitting short duration, broad bandwidth ultrasound pulses through a blood vessel so that emboli passing through the vessel are insonified;
b) an ultrasound receiver for receiving echo pulses from an emboli passing through said blood vessel and from surrounding tissue and for converting said echo pulses into an electronic signal representation; and
c) signal processing means for processing said electronic signal representation of said echo pulses to detect the presence of an emboli and to characterize said emboli by determining the polarity of the electronic signal representation of the echo pulses.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A method and apparatus for ultrasonically detecting an embolus in blood flow includes an ultrasound transducer for transmitting ultrasound pulses into the blood flow being interrogated and receiving reflections from acoustic impedance changes in the body. The reflected signals are converted to an electronic signal representation which is subsequently processed to detect and classify emboli in the blood flow. A short duration, broad bandwidth ultrasound signal is used to preserve the polarity of the reflected signal. The polarity is then used to classify the emboli based on a positive or negative reflection coefficient. Emboli having a negative reflection coefficient are classified as either gaseous or fat particles, and emboli having a positive reflection coefficient are classified as solid particles. The emboli can be further classified based on the amplitude of the reflected signal, or designated features of the time waveform or FFT of the reflected signal.
128 Citations
39 Claims
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1. An ultrasonic pulse echo apparatus for detecting an embolus in blood flow, comprising:
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a) at least on ultrasound transducer for transmitting short duration, broad bandwidth ultrasound pulses through a blood vessel so that emboli passing through the vessel are insonified; b) an ultrasound receiver for receiving echo pulses from an emboli passing through said blood vessel and from surrounding tissue and for converting said echo pulses into an electronic signal representation; and c) signal processing means for processing said electronic signal representation of said echo pulses to detect the presence of an emboli and to characterize said emboli by determining the polarity of the electronic signal representation of the echo pulses. - 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)
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24. A method for ultrasonically detecting an embolus in blood flow comprising:
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(a) transmitting a short duration, broad bandwidth ultrasound pulse through a blood vessel so that emboli passing through the vessel are insonified; (b) receiving echo pulses from the emboli passing through the blood vessel and from surrounding tissue at a receiver; (c) converting the echo pulses into an electronic signal representation; (d) processing said electronic signal representation of said echo pulses to detect the presence of an emboli; and (e) characterizing said emboli by determining the polarity of the electronic signal representation of the echo pulses. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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Specification