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Multimodal intravascular photoacoustic and ultrasound imaging

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Abstract

The rupture of atherosclerotic plaques is the leading cause of death in developed countries. Early identification of vulnerable plaque is the essential step in preventing acute coronary events. Intravascular photoacoustic (IVPA) technology is able to visualize chemical composition of atherosclerotic plaque with high specificity and sensitivity. Integrated with intravascular ultrasound (IVUS) imaging, this multimodal intravascular IVPA/IVUS imaging technology is able to provide both structural and chemical compositions of arterial walls for detecting and characterizing atherosclerotic plaques. In this paper, we present representative multimodal IVPA/IVUS imaging systems and discuss current scientific innovations, potential limitations, and prospective improvements for characterization of coronary atherosclerosis.

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Fig. 1

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Fig. 7

Adapted from [22, 23]. (Color figure online)

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to Dr. Qifa Zhou’s group for contributing experts in ultrasound transducer and ultrasound imaging.

Funding

National Institutes of Health (R01HL-125084, R01HL-127271, R01EY-026091, R01EY-021529, and P41EB-015890); Air Force Office of Scientific Research (FA9550-17-1-0193).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Beckman Laser Institute, University of California, Irvine, 1002 Health Sciences Road, Irvine, CA, 92617, USA

    Yan Li & Zhongping Chen

  2. Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of California, Irvine, 5200 Engineering Hall, Irvine, CA, 92697-2700, USA

    Yan Li & Zhongping Chen

Authors
  1. Yan Li
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Correspondence to Zhongping Chen.

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Conflict of interest

Dr. Zhongping Chen has a financial interest in OCT Medical Imaging, Inc., which, however, did not support this work.

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All methods were carried out in accordance with the Guide for Care and Use of Laboratory Animals.

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Li, Y., Chen, Z. Multimodal intravascular photoacoustic and ultrasound imaging. Biomed. Eng. Lett. 8, 193–201 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13534-018-0061-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s13534-018-0061-8

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