A method and system for treating tissue with a combined therapy profile is disclosed. In one exemplary embodiment, ultrasound energy is used to treat numerous depths of tissue within a region of interest and the spatial and temporal properties of the ultrasound energy are varied for more effective treatment. The method and system of the present invention are configured to treat all of the tissue from the surface on down and not spare intervening tissue.

A dual-mode ultrasound system provides real-time imaging and therapy delivery using the same transducer elements of a transducer array. The system may use a multi-channel driver to drive the elements of the array. The system uses a real-time monitoring and feedback image control of the therapy based on imaging data acquired using the dual-mode ultrasound array (DMUA) of transducer elements. Further, for example, multi-modal coded excitation may be used in both imaging and therapy modes. Still further, for example, adaptive, real-time refocusing for improved imaging and therapy can be achieved using, for example, array directivity vectors obtained from DMUA pulse-echo data.

A probe (10) transmits and receives diagnostic ultrasound and therapeutic ultrasound. A transmission unit (12) forms a transmission beam of the therapeutic ultrasound having a higher wave number than the diagnostic ultrasound and scans the transmission beam of the therapeutic ultrasound in a therapeutic region set inside a diagnostic region by controlling the probe (10). Since the therapeutic ultrasound having a higher wave number than the diagnostic ultrasound is used, the therapeutic effect is higher than when using a therapeutic ultrasound having a similar wave number to the diagnostic ultrasound, and since the transmission beam of the therapeutic ultrasound is scanned in the therapeutic region, the therapeutic effect is higher than when the transmission beam of the therapeutic ultrasound is not scanned.

Devices, systems and/or methods for monitoring and/or stimulating osteogenesis use sensor data from a target site of a bone to produce a quantitative output that can be used to determine the healing rate of the patient, when the bone at the target has fully consolidated and/or to direct further treatment of the patient.

Systems and methods are provided for performing transcranial diagnostic procedures using a transcranial ultrasound transducer array. The array elements are positioned and oriented such that far field regions respectively associated therewith spatially overlap within the brain of a patient. The array elements may be oriented approximately normal to the skull, permitting efficient coupling of ultrasound energy into the brain. The array elements are controlled to generate ultrasound pulses, where the timing of the pulses is controlled, based on registration between the array elements and volumetric image data, such that ultrasound energy is focused at a target within spatially overlapping far fields of the array elements. The transcranial ultrasound transducer array elements may be positioned and oriented relative to the skull such that their respective ultrasound beams are focused within the skull and diverging with the brain.

In accordance with the present disclosure, ultrasound-based techniques using a combined scanning and treatment array module are employed to find and treat anomalies corresponding to bleed events. By way of example, ultrasound data may be acquired with a scanning array at one or more locations on a patient anatomy. A treatment array may deliver heat to a targeted anomaly to provide therapy. Such a technique may be useful outside of a hospital environment.

A method and system for energy-based (e.g., ultrasound treatment and/or other modalities) of skin glands are provided. An exemplary method and system for targeted treatment of skin glands, such as sweat and/or sebaceous glands, can be configured in various manners, such as through use of therapy only, therapy and monitoring, imaging and therapy, or therapy, imaging, and monitoring, and/or through use of focused, unfocused, or defocused ultrasound (or other energy) through control of various spatial and temporal parameters. As a result, ablative energy can be deposited at the particular depth at which the skin gland population is located below the skin surface.

An apparatus for treating vascular thrombosis with ultrasound, includes a therapeutic ultrasonic transducer, suitable for generating focused ultrasonic waves that propagate along an emission axis; an imaging ultrasonic transducer associated with the therapeutic transducer; a means for moving the focal spot of the therapeutic ultrasonic transducer along the emission axis with respect to the imaging transducer; a motorized mechanical system for translating the transducers along at least a first axis parallel to the emission axis and a second axis perpendicular to the first; and an electronic control system for driving the motorized mechanical system and the means for moving the focal spot of the therapeutic transducer.

Various approaches to focusing an ultrasound transducer includes causing the ultrasound transducer to transmit ultrasound waves to the target region; causing the detection system to indirectly measure the focusing properties; and based at least in part on the indirectly measured focusing properties, adjusting a parameter value associated with at least one of the transducer elements so as to achieve a target treatment power at the target region.

Various approaches for microbubble-enhanced ultrasound treatment of target tissue include receiving a desired characteristic of the microbubbles for treating the target tissue; causing the microbubbles to be dispensed from the administration device; and comparing a characteristic of the dispensed microbubbles to the desired characteristic so as to validate a match therebetween.