Academic researchers in North Carolina have developed the first ultrasound “drill” that can be aimed straight ahead, allowing doctors to better target clots. The tool also incorporates an injection tube that allows users to inject microbubbles at the site of the clot, making the ultrasound waves more effective.
The surgical tool, tested only in synthetic blood vessels to date, uses low-frequency intravascular ultrasound to break down blood clots that cause deep vein thrombosis.
The ultrasound “drill” can be aimed straight ahead, allowing doctors to better target clots. (Source: North Carolina State University)Available intravascular ultrasound tools for clearing clots emit ultrasound waves laterally, which makes it harder to target clots exclusively. The ultrasound can also damage surrounding blood vessels. However, ultrasound breaks the clots into very small pieces, so doctors don’t need to use large doses of blood thinner to dissolve the clot remnants.
A more targeted technique which poses less risk to blood vessels uses a diamond-tipped drill to effectively chew through clots. But this method breaks the clot into relatively large pieces, requiring higher doses of blood-thinning drugs – which can pose risks of their own.
The new technology from North Carolina State University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers improves the accuracy of breaking down clots into very fine particles without relying on high doses of blood thinners.
Applied to a synthetic blood vessel using cow’s blood, the system dissolved 90 percent of a clot in 3.5 to 4 hours without using any blood thinners. The same can be achieved in 10 hours with a combination of conventional ultrasound tools and blood thinners.
