Biophysics & Safety Flashcards
What can ultrasound induce?
Thermal effects: absorption of ultrasound heats tissue
Bubble and cavitation effects: the formation, oscillation, and
collapse of bubbles of gas and vapour due to ultrasound
Radiation effects: force produced by a change in energy density due to the absorption, scattering or reflection of ultrasound
What can the effects of ultrasound be used for?
They can be exploited for ultrasound therapy
What happens due to absorption to the beam?
There is a loss in acoustic energy
The time average intensity will decay exponentially along the beam axis
What is the rate of heating proportional to?
Spatial gradient of intensity
What is P_A (x)?
The time average pressure which is spatial varying
What does the local pressure amplitude indicate about the heating by ultrasound?
Heating by ultrasound is proportional to the absorption coefficient, and the square of the local pressure amplitude and inversely proportional to acoustic impedance
What happens after the ultrasound is switched off?
The heat will gradually decrease due to diffusion (conduction) and perfusion
What can be used in the absence of diffusion and perfusion (if heat is deposited) quickly?
The change in temperature is δT/δt = (1 / ρ_0 C_0) Q
What is the total temperature rise?
T = T_0 + ΔT
ΔT = temperature rise (no diffusion)
Why can the temperature rise equations be used in a focused transducer?
Strictly only valid for a harmonic plane wave, in the focal region of a focused transducer, but the wave-field is approximately plane, so they can still be applied
What do nonlinear effects move?
Energy to higher frequencies (leads to enhanced heating)
What affects heating rate?
Human tissue has a range of absorption values
What are Q and ΔT proportional to?
α
What happens as frequency is increased?
Absorption increases and higher frequencies will give increased heating
What does the area under the curve of attenuation vs frequency graph give?
The thermal dose delivered at different temperatures
What happens to tissue at temperature < 40 degrees?
No irreversible damage (renaturation can occur: regains activity)
What happens to tissue at temperature > 40 degrees?
Cell proteins (e.g., enzymes) start to undergo conformational (shape) changes due to violent vibrations of the molecule and they begin to denature (loss of biological activity) and lose function
What happens above 65 degrees?
Collagen fibres shrink, tri-helical structure breaks, tissue coagulates
What does the actual thermal damage to tissue depend on?
Both the temperature and exposure time
What do heated cells look like?
Rounded shape
Lack of organised cytoskeleton
What is thermal dose measured in?
Cumulative equivalent minutes (CEM 43 degrees or t_43)
t_43 = time in minutes
How is the thermal dose found for different temperatures?
t_43 = ∫ R^43-T dt
Gives the number of minutes to achieve the same effect as at 43 degrees C
What is the difference in slope between 43 degree C due to?
The development of thermo-tolerance during heating
What is thermo-tolerance?
an acquired resistance to thermal toxicity regulated by heat-shock proteins, which are up-regulated when cells are exposed to thermal stress
Also a memory effect
What is the most commonly used threshold for cell death?
t_43 = 240 min
How long does it take to reach a given thermal dose above 43 degrees C?
For every degree increase above 43°C, time to effect is halved
(in most cases, heating isn’t uniform)