Abstract: An apparatus for magnetic resonance imaging includes a magnet, a patient support, and a contoured quadrature coil. The contoured quadrature coil includes a ring coil and an angled butterfly coil. The angled butterfly coil may have a front outer section, an inner section, and a back outer section. The front outer section and the back outer section may be oriented diagonally from the plane of the ring coil such that a portion of the front outer section and/or the back outer section are disposed above the plane of the ring coil and a portion of the front outer section and/or the back outer section are disposed below the plane of the ring coil. Thus, the planes of the front and back outer sections may be angled with respect to each other, and the inner section may be substantially pyramidal and disposed along or below the plane of the ring coil.

Abstract: Provided are methods and systems for movement correction in an MRI environment. In one aspect, provided are systems and methods for movement correction, comprising receiving a first plurality of images from a first scan of a subject with a first camera, receiving magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) images obtained concurrently with the first scan, correlating the first plurality of images obtained from the first scan with the MRI images, resulting in motion correction data, and providing the motion correction data to an MRI system, wherein the MRI system adjusts scanning according to the motion correction data.

Abstract: An intravascular ultrasound catheter system is provided and enables a simplified, economical technique for ultrasound visualization of a blood vessel. The catheter may include a park ablation system for crossing chronic total occlusions and severe stenoses. The catheter is advanceable and is oriented entirely under manual control of the clinician and the application of radiofrequency energy for spark erosion of the stenosis also is controlled manually by the clinician. The system enables the clinician to observe an ultrasound image sufficiently to determine where to orient the ablation electrode so as to reduce the risk of dissection or perforation of the blood vessel. The ultrasound image is generated in response to manual rotation of the catheter and the ablation spark is generated only when the physician is satisfied as to the orientation of the electrode within the vessel.

Abstract: A trackable medical instrument for use in a computer assisted image guided surgery system having a digitizer for tracking the position of the instrument in three dimensional space and a display providing an indication of the position of the instrument with respect to images of a body part taken preoperatively, wherein the instrument comprises a tracking array located distally of a rotatable, axially fixed drive handle.

Abstract: A method performed at a computer system having one or more processors and memory storing one or more programs for execution by the one or more processors is disclosed. The method includes accessing multiple images of a biological structure, generating an electrical property map of at least a portion of the biological structure in accordance with two or more of the multiple images, and providing at least a subset of the electrical property map.

Abstract: A method of thermoacoustic imaging of an object includes providing thermoacoustic signals representing a mechanical wave response to a delivery of electromagnetic energy into the imaged object, reconstructing an energy deposition image representing a local energy absorption within the object based on the thermoacoustic signals, and decomposing the energy deposition image into a quantitative absorption image representing a distribution of a local absorption coefficient in the object and at least one further image component.

Abstract: Disclosed is an ultrasound diagnostic imaging apparatus including an ultrasound probe which outputs transmission ultrasound waves toward a subject by a driving signal and which outputs received signals by receiving reflection ultrasound waves from the subject and a transmitting unit which generates the transmission ultrasound waves by the ultrasound probe by outputting the driving signal, and the transmitting unit generates the driving signal of square wave having a waveform in which a standard pulse signal where a pulse cycle is 2 T is combined with two first pulse signals of same polarity having a pulse width A (A<T) and a second pulse signal having a pulse width B (B=T?2A), the second pulse signal having a polarity different from the polarity of the first pulse signals.

Abstract: An ultrasonic treatment device includes a vibration transmitting section transmitting an ultrasonic vibration to a distal end of an ultrasonic probe, and a hole defining portion extended toward a proximal direction along the longitudinal axis from a distal end portion of the vibration transmitting section and defining a hole-shaped portion inside the vibration transmitting section. The ultrasonic treatment device includes a tube member extended inside the vibration transmitting section and including a tube distal end which is connected to the hole defining portion of the vibration transmitting section at a first node position of the ultrasonic vibration to a distal direction side of a piezoelectric element.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a new forward-looking ultrasound device including a local actuator embedded inside an elongate member such as a guide wire or catheter. The present invention includes an ultrasound transducer element configured to engage with the local actuator and rotate about an axis of rotation at least when the ultrasound transducer element and the local actuator are engaged. Also disclosed are methods of using the same.

Abstract: The portable sensor device is connected with the arterial pressure measurement catheter by way of a pressure hose. The electronic pressure sensor is accommodated in the sensor housing. The analog sensor signal is output to the patient monitor by way of a cable. Aside from the channel for the analog sensor signal, additional channels are provided for communication between sensor device and patient monitor. A bidirectional channel serves for writing to and querying the memory module, in which patient data, such as age, gender, height/weight, etc., can be stored. The three-way cock possesses the settings “M” (measurement operation) and “0” (calibration measurement), in which the contactor is brought into connection with the contact. The switching contact is transmitted to the patient monitor, which thereby automatically recognizes zeroing of the sensor.

Abstract: Methods and systems for determining the position of an object, such as tracking the position of one or more catheters in a patient's heart cavity are disclosed herein.

Abstract: A plurality of sets of volume data, each of which represent the state of a beating heart in different phases, are obtained. Coronary artery regions are extracted from at least two sets of volume data from among the obtained sets of volume data. A plurality of analysis points are set in each extracted coronary artery region. Correlations are established among analysis points set at the same anatomical positions within the coronary artery regions. Index values that indicate the character of plaque are calculated at each analysis point within all of the coronary artery regions. The character of plaque is evaluated at positions within the coronary artery regions, by integrating the index values calculated at the analysis points corresponding to each of the positions. The evaluation results regarding the character of plaque at each of the positions within the coronary artery regions are output, correlated with information regarding the positions.

Abstract: Devices, systems, and methods for controlling the field of view in imaging systems are provided. For example, in one embodiment an imaging system includes a flexible elongate member sized and shaped for use within an internal structure of a patient, an imaging transducer positioned within the distal portion of the flexible elongate member, an imaging marker positioned to be detectable within a field of view of the imaging transducer, and a controller in communication with the flexible elongate member and configured to adjust a control signal of the flexible elongate member based on the detection of the imaging marker in data received from the flexible elongate member in order to achieve a desired field of view for the imaging transducer.

Abstract: A system for determining a location of an electrode of a medical device (e.g., a catheter) in a body of a patient includes a localization block for producing an uncompensated electrode location, a motion compensation block for producing a compensation signal (i.e., for respiration, cardiac, etc.), and a mechanism for subtracting the compensation signal from the uncompensated electrode location. The result is a corrected electrode location substantially free of respiration and cardiac artifacts. The motion compensation block includes a dynamic adaptation feature which accounts for changes in a patient's respiration patterns as well as intentional movements of the medical device to different locations within the patient's body. The system further includes an automatic compensation gain control which suppresses compensation when certain conditions, such as noise or sudden patch impedance changes, are detected.

Abstract: Devices, systems, and methods for controlling the field of view in imaging systems are provided. For example, in one embodiment an imaging system includes a flexible elongate member sized and shaped for use within an internal structure of a patient, an imaging transducer positioned within the distal portion of the flexible elongate member, an imaging marker positioned to be detectable within a field of view of the imaging transducer, and a controller in communication with the flexible elongate member and configured to adjust a control signal of the flexible elongate member based on the detection of the imaging marker in data received from the flexible elongate member in order to achieve a desired field of view for the imaging transducer.

Abstract: Devices, systems, and methods for controlling the field of view in imaging systems are provided. For example, in one embodiment an imaging system includes a flexible elongate member sized and shaped for use within an internal structure of a patient, an imaging transducer positioned within the distal portion of the flexible elongate member, an imaging marker positioned to be detectable within a field of view of the imaging transducer, and a controller in communication with the flexible elongate member and configured to adjust a control signal of the flexible elongate member based on the detection of the imaging marker in data received from the flexible elongate member in order to achieve a desired field of view for the imaging transducer.

Abstract: A method for characterizing tissue of a patient, including receiving acoustic data derived from the interaction between the tissue and the acoustic waves irradiating the tissue; generating a morphology rendering of the tissue from the acoustic data, in which the rendering represents at least one biomechanical property of the tissue; determining a prognostic parameter for a region of interest in the rendering, in which the prognostic parameter incorporates the biomechanical property; and analyzing the prognostic parameter to characterize the region of interest. In some embodiment, the method further includes introducing a contrast agent into the tissue; generating a set of enhanced morphology renderings of the tissue after introducing the contrast agent; determining an enhanced prognostic parameter from the enhanced morphology renderings; and analyzing the enhanced prognostic parameter.

Abstract: Disclosed herein are sensors that include: (a) a circuit board that includes an electronic processor; (b) a plurality of radiation sources, each source being attached to the circuit board; and (c) a spectral detector attached to the circuit board, the spectral detector being configured to analyze radiation derived from one or more of the plurality of radiation sources. During use, the sensors are configured to be worn on a portion of a body of a subject. The electronic processor is configured to cause two or more of the plurality of radiation sources to direct incident radiation to the subject, to cause the spectral detector to analyze radiation from the subject, and to determine one or more properties of the subject based on the radiation from the subject. Methods of making and using these sensors are also disclosed.

Abstract: There are provided a fixed focus transducer array and an ultrasonic wave transceiving apparatus using the same. The fixed focus transducer array includes: a plurality of transducers, transducing electrical signals into ultrasonic signals to thereby focus the ultrasonic signals on a single focal point and transducing reflected ultrasonic signals from the single focal point into electrical signals to thereby output the electrical signals, wherein the plurality of transducers are disposed to be symmetrical to each other based on one transducer and simultaneously focus the ultrasonic signals on the single focal point at speeds according to the respective natural frequencies thereof. Therefore, a circuit area is reduced, whereby miniaturization may be implemented and a processing speed may be increased.

Abstract: There is provided an inside observation apparatus of an endoscope and the like which can perform an inside observation for irradiating an illumination light to a minute area of a surface of an object (for example, a living tissue) having a light scattering property and detecting a back-scattered light of the illumination light, can increase a detected light amount by a simply and low cost configuration by making an area of a detection region larger than an illumination region, and can reduce a time necessary to detect an body (for example, a blood vessel) to be observed and detect a region deeper than a conventional region.