IEEE Trans Biomed Eng. 2019 Dec;66(12):3330-3338. doi: 10.1109/TBME.2019.2904087. Epub 2019 Mar 11.
High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment is a promising non-invasive method for killing or destroying the diseased tissues by locally delivering thermal and mechanical energy without damaging surrounding normal tissues. In HIFU, measuring the temperature at the site of delivery is important for improving therapeutic efficacy, controlling safety, and appropriately planning a treatment. Several researchers have proposed photoacoustic thermometry for monitoring HIFU treatment, but they had many limitations, including the inability to image while the HIFU is on, inability to provide two-dimensional monitoring, and the inability to be used clinically. In this paper, we propose a novel integrated real-time photoacoustic thermometry system for HIFU treatment monitoring. The system provides ultrasound B-mode imaging, photoacoustic structural imaging, and photoacoustic thermometry during HIFU treatment in real-time for both in vitro and in vivo environments, without any interference from the strong therapeutic HIFU waves. We have successfully tested the real-time photoacoustic thermometry by investigating the relationship between the photoacoustic amplitude and the measured temperature with in vitro phantoms and in vivo tumor-bearing mice. The results show the feasibility of a real-time photoacoustic thermometry system for safe and effective monitoring of HIFU treatment.
高强度聚焦超声（HIFU）治疗是一种很有前途的非侵入性方法，它可以通过局部传递热和机械能来杀死或破坏病变组织，而不会损伤周围的正常组织。在 HIFU 中，测量治疗部位的温度对于提高治疗效果、控制安全性和适当规划治疗非常重要。一些研究人员已经提出了光声测温法来监测 HIFU 治疗，但它们存在许多局限性，包括在 HIFU 开启时无法成像、无法提供二维监测以及无法在临床上使用。在本文中，我们提出了一种用于 HIFU 治疗监测的新型集成实时光声测温系统。该系统在 HIFU 治疗过程中实时提供超声 B 模式成像、光声结构成像和光声测温，适用于体外和体内环境，不会受到强治疗 HIFU 波的干扰。我们已经通过在体外和体内肿瘤荷瘤小鼠中研究光声幅度与测量温度之间的关系成功测试了实时光声测温，结果表明该实时光声测温系统对于安全有效地监测 HIFU 治疗是可行的。
