title: Anterior-posterior transcranial ultrasound to measure cranial oscillations.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  We aimed to provide information on whether or not the correlation between body tilt and the pulse amplitude of transcranial ultrasonic time-of-flight waveform can be observed in the anterior-posterior skull direction. Also, we asked the question whether or not the skull pulsation can be detected since the cranial bones involved are thicker.
  
  
  METHODS
  The experimental model of body tilt that alters intracranial pressure by shifting body fluid headward was employed. Transcranial ultrasound waveforms were examined in 15 healthy volunteers positioned at five tilt angles of +30 degrees, 0 degrees, -30 degrees, -60 degrees, and -90 degrees from the horizontal body position. A pulse-echo transducer was placed on the middle forehead and ultrasound waveforms were recorded. Synchronized variations in the ultrasonic time-of-flight with heartbeats were monitored using the pulsed phase locked loop technique for the output voltage of the ultrasound transducer. Simultaneous effects of body tilt on cardiovascular parameters were also evaluated.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Pulse amplitudes of ultrasonic time-of-flight waveforms were found to vary with body tilt. Repeated-measures ANOVA and regression analysis showed a negative correlation between body tilt angle and pulse amplitude. The regression line has the equation: pulse amplitude = (1.158-0.01023 x tilt angle) x 10(-4) voltage. There was no such relationship between head-down body tilt and altered mean blood pressure or heart rate.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  An increase in the pulse amplitude of the anterior-posterior transcranial ultrasonic time-of-flight waveform can be detected when the head-down body tilt angle increases.
authors.affiliation: Hamilton Glaucoma Center, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093-0946, USA. joliu@ucsd.edu
authors.forename: John H K
authors.initials: JH
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: John E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Lynch
authors.forename: Armando
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Rosales-Velderrain
authors.forename: Douglas G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Chang
authors.forename: Robert N
authors.initials: RN
authors.lastname: Weinreb
authors.forename: Alan R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Hargens
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000337:Aerospace Medicine; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D005260:Female; D018495:Fluid Shifts / Q000502:physiology*; D018475:Head-Down Tilt / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011673:Pulsatile Flow / Q000502:physiology; D012044:Regression Analysis; D013026:Space Flight; D017585:Ultrasonography, Doppler, Transcranial; D018474:Weightlessness Simulation
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