Review
Ultrasound focal beam surgery

https://doi.org/10.1016/0301-5629(95)02010-1Get rights and content

Abstract

High intensity beams of ultrasound may be focused at depth within the body, thereby producing selective damage within the focal volume, with no harm to overlying or surrounding tissues. The technique is thus noninvasive, insofar as the source of ultrasound energy is situated outside the body. The mechanism for cell killing is predominantly thermal, although acoustic cavitation may also occur. Ultrasound focal surgery was first conceived in the 1940s as a possible tool for creating selective damage in the brain for neurosurgical research; its potential for more widespread clinical use was not exploited at that time, probably because of the lack of facilities for providing precise visualisation and localisation of the damage. The availability of modern imaging techniques has encouraged a revival of clinical interest, and applications in ophthalmology, urology and oncology are currently being developed.

References (77)

  • R.S. Rosenberg et al.

    Effects of ultrasonic radiation on the ciliary body

    Am. J. Ophthalmol.

    (1967)
  • R.H. Silverman et al.

    Therapeutic ultrasound for the treatment of glaucoma

    Am. J. Ophthalmol.

    (1991)
  • G.F. Young et al.

    Focal lesions in the brain of growing rabbits produced by focused ultrasound

    Exp. Neurol.

    (1964)
  • L. Bakay et al.

    Ultrasonically produced changes in the blood-brain barrier

    AMA Arch. Neurol. Psychol.

    (1957)
  • H.T. Ballantine et al.

    Progress and problems in the neurological application of focused ultrasound

    J. Neurosurg.

    (1960)
  • J.W. Barnard et al.

    Small localised ultrasonic lesions in the white and grey matter of the cat brain

    Arch. Neurol. Psychiatry (Chicago)

    (1956)
  • L. Basauri et al.

    A simple method for production of trackless lesions with focused ultrasound: statistical evaluation of the effects of irradiation on the central nervous system of the cat

    J. Physiol.

    (1962)
  • E. Bell

    The action of ultrasound on mouse liver

    J. Cell Comp. Physiol.

    (1957)
  • S.E.P. Burgess et al.

    Effect of hyperthermia on experimental choroidal melanoma

    Br. J. Ophthalmol.

    (1985)
  • A.K. Burov et al.

    Action of high intensity ultrasonic vibrations on malignant tumours in animals and man

    Doklady Akad. Nauk. S.S.S.R.

    (1956)
  • J.Y. Chapelon et al.

    Tissue ablation with focused ultrasound (TAFU)

    J. Endourol.

    (1991)
  • L. Chen

    Study of high intensity focused ultrasound in the treatment of hepatic metastases

  • L. Chen et al.

    Effect of blood perfusion on the ablation of liver parenchyma with high intensity focused ultrasound

    Phys. Med. Biol.

    (1993)
  • R.L. Clarke et al.

    Mechanisms of lesion formation by high intensity focused ultrasound

    Ultrasound Med. Biol.

    (1995)
  • H.E. Cline et al.

    MR-guided focused ultrasound surgery

    J. Comp. Assist. Tomogr.

    (1992)
  • D.J. Coleman et al.

    Treatment of experimental lens capsular tears with intense focused ultrasound

    Br. J. Ophthalmol.

    (1985)
  • L.N. Dorr et al.

    The effects of tissue inhomogeneities and large blood vessels on the thermal exposure induced by short high power ultrasound pulses

    Int. J. Hypertherm.

    (1992)
  • R.S. Foster et al.

    High intensity focused ultrasound in the treatment of prostatic disease

    Eur. Urol.

    (1993)
  • L.A. Frizzell et al.

    Thresholds for focal ultrasonic lesions in rabbit kidney, liver and testicle

    IEEE Trans. Biomed. Eng.

    (1977)
  • L.A. Frizzell

    Threshold dosages for damage to mammalian liver by high intensity focused ultrasound

    IEEE Trans. Ultrason. Ferroelec. Freq. Control

    (1988)
  • F.J. Fry

    Precision high intensity focusing ultrasound machines for surgery

    Am. J. Phys. Med.

    (1958)
  • F.J. Fry

    Intense focused ultrasound in medicine

    Eur. Urol.

    (1993)
  • F.J. Fry et al.

    Threshold ultrasonic dosages for structural changes in the mammalian brain

    J. Acoust. Soc. Am.

    (1970)
  • F.J. Fry et al.

    Tumour irradiation with intense ultrasound

    Ultrasound Med. Biol.

    (1978)
  • W.J. Fry

    Action of ultrasound on nerve tissue—a review

    J. Acoust. Soc. Am.

    (1953)
  • W.J. Fry et al.

    Production of focal destructive lesions in the central nervous system with ultrasound

    J. Neurosurg.

    (1954)
  • W.J. Fry et al.

    Ultrasonically produced localised selective lesions in the central nervous system

    Am. J. Phys. Med.

    (1955)
  • W.J. Fry et al.

    Determination of absolute sound levels and acoustic absorption coefficients by thermocouple probes—theory and experiment

    J. Acoust. Soc. Am.

    (1954)
  • Cited by (0)

    View full text