Integrated ultrasound and photoacoustic probe for co-registered intravascular imaging.
We report on the synergy of an integrated ultrasound (US) and photoacoustic (PA) probe system for intravascular imaging. The combined dual-modality probe is based on a 39 MHz ring-shaped US transducer which detects both US echoes and laser-generated PA signals. By combining optical fiber, US transducer, and micromirror, we can obtain intravascular cross-sectional B-scan images by internal illumination of the sample. The performance of the probe is evaluated in a phantom study. Moreover, the coaxially designed probe also provides co-registered US and PA images of a normal rabbit aorta, which demonstrates the imaging ability of the dual-functional system, implying future clinical applications.
Wuhan University, Department of Physics and Key Laboratory of Acoustic and Photonic Materials and Devices, Ministry of Education, Wuhan 430072, China.
Wei
W
Wei
Xiang
X
Li
Qifa
Q
Zhou
K Kirk
KK
Shung
Zhongping
Z
Chen
D000818:Animals; D001011:Aorta / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D001808:Blood Vessels / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D004867:Equipment Design; D006801:Humans; D053844:Lasers, Solid-State; D055620:Optical Phenomena; D019047:Phantoms, Imaging; D061088:Photoacoustic Techniques / Q000295:instrumentation*; D011817:Rabbits; D014463:Ultrasonography / Q000295:instrumentation*