Focused ultrasound system with adaptive anatomical aperture shaping
First Claim
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1. A focused ultrasound system, comprising:
- an ultrasound transducer device having a plurality of transducer elements;
drive circuitry coupled to the transducer elements; and
a drive signal controller coupled to the drive circuitry, the drive signal controller configured to individually control delivery of acoustic energy from the transducer elements along an ultrasound energy path towards the target tissue such that an energy intensity measured at the target tissue remains at or above a prescribed treatment level, while an energy intensity measured at tissue to be protected in the ultrasound energy delivery path and outside of the target tissue remains at or below a prescribed safety level, wherein the drive signal controller controls one or more of the transducer elements to create a limited energy density at the tissue to be protected in the ultrasound energy path.
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Abstract
A method of treating tissue within a body includes directing an ultrasound transducer having a plurality of transducer elements towards target body tissue, and delivering ultrasound energy towards the target tissue from the transducer elements such that an energy intensity at the target tissue is at or above a prescribed treatment level, while an energy intensity at tissue to be protected in the ultrasound energy path of the transducer elements is at or below a prescribed safety level.
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Citations
22 Claims
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1. A focused ultrasound system, comprising:
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an ultrasound transducer device having a plurality of transducer elements; drive circuitry coupled to the transducer elements; and a drive signal controller coupled to the drive circuitry, the drive signal controller configured to individually control delivery of acoustic energy from the transducer elements along an ultrasound energy path towards the target tissue such that an energy intensity measured at the target tissue remains at or above a prescribed treatment level, while an energy intensity measured at tissue to be protected in the ultrasound energy delivery path and outside of the target tissue remains at or below a prescribed safety level, wherein the drive signal controller controls one or more of the transducer elements to create a limited energy density at the tissue to be protected in the ultrasound energy path. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
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6. A method for creating a treatment plan for treating a patient using a focused ultrasound system, the focused ultrasound system comprising a transducer having a plurality of transducer elements, the method comprising:
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identifying target tissue to be treated; identifying tissue to be protected along an ultrasound energy path outside of the target tissue; estimating energy intensities at the target tissue and the tissue to be protected based at least in part on the relative position between the transducer and the target tissue and the relative position between the transducer and the tissue to be protected; specifying operational parameters of one or more of the transducer elements to cause the energy intensity delivered to the target tissue to remain above a prescribed treatment threshold while the estimated energy at the tissue to be protected remains below a prescribed safety threshold; and creating a treatment plan based on the adjusted operational parameters. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8)
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9. A method for treating a patient using a focused ultrasound system, the focused ultrasound system comprising a transducer having a plurality of transducer elements, the method comprising:
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identifying target tissue to be treated; identifying tissue to be protected along an ultrasound energy path outside of the target tissue; emitting an acoustic wave towards the target tissue; measuring energy intensities at the target tissue and the tissue to be protected; and adjusting operational parameters of one or more of the transducer elements directed to the tissue to be protected if the measured energy intensity at the tissue to be protected is above a prescribed safety threshold while maintaining a minimum energy intensity at the target tissue.
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10. A method for creating a treatment plan for treating a patient using a focused ultrasound system, the focused ultrasound system comprising a transducer having a plurality of transducer elements, the method comprising:
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creating a model representing energies to be delivered to a patient by respective transducer elements of the transducer; calculating an energy density based on the model at a tissue region along an ultrasound energy path of the transducer elements, the tissue region associated with patient body tissue to be protected from ultrasound energy treatment; determining whether the calculated energy density at the tissue region to be protected exceeds a prescribed safety threshold; determining adjustments to operational parameters of one or more of the transducer elements such that the energy density at the tissue region to be protected remains at or below the prescribed safety threshold while maintaining a minimum energy intensity at a target tissue; and creating a treatment plan based on the model and the adjustments. - View Dependent Claims (11, 12, 13, 14, 15)
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16. A method using a focused ultrasound system, the focused ultrasound system comprising a transducer having a plurality of transducer elements, the method comprising:
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directing the ultrasound transducer towards a first region of a subject; delivering a sub-lethal ultrasound energy from the transducer elements towards the first region; obtaining an energy density associated with the delivered ultrasound energy at a second region of the subject; determining whether the energy density at the second region exceeds a prescribed safety threshold; and reducing the delivered ultrasound energy from one or more of the transducer elements if the determined energy density at the second region is above the prescribed safety threshold while maintaining a minimum energy intensity at the first region. - View Dependent Claims (17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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Specification