Imaging Microvasculature with Contrast Enhanced Ultraharmonic Ultrasound

Purpose: Atherosclerotic plaque neovascularization was shown to be one of the strongest predictors of future cardiovascular events [1]. Yet, the clinical tools for coronary wall microvasculature detection in vivo are lacking. Here we report a contrast-enhanced ultrasound pulse sequence capable of detecting microvasculature invisible in conventional intracoronary imaging. Material and Methods: Our approach consisted in imaging contrast microbubbles using first order ultraharmonics that arise at 1.5 times the transmit frequency. These signals are specific to the ultrasound contrast agent, preventing non-linear pro…