Noninvasive aortic pressure and flow measurement.
The long-term aim of this project is to noninvasively measure aortic blood pressure and aortic blood flow using a portable ultrasonic device. It is envisioned that a small array of ultrasonic crystals will be placed on the suprasternal notch of the neck. The ultrasound beam will be continually positioned onto the aortic arch by a computer. Wall motion will be used as an index of pressure, and flow will be determined through Doppler techniques. The short-term aim is to adapt an ultrasonic hyperthermia array design and control system to produce a focused ultrasound beam from a linear array for aortic pressure and flow measurement. The linear array consists of eight transmitting/receiving crystals, whose focus is controlled by continually changing the time delays for the excitation of each crystal. The hardware and software necessary to produce the delayed excitation signals is discussed.
Etemad
M E
ME
Dept. Electrical Engineering, College of Engineering and Architecture, North Dakota State University, Fargo 58105, USA.
James
J M
JM
Ewert
D L
DL
D001013:Aorta, Thoracic / Q000502:physiology*; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination; D006801:Humans; D018608:Ultrasonography, Doppler