Systems and methods for non-invasive fat reduction can include targeting a region of interest below a surface of skin, which contains fat and delivering ultrasound energy to the region of interest. The ultrasound energy generates a thermal lesion with said ultrasound energy on a fat cell. The lesion can create an opening in the surface of the fat cell, which allows the draining of a fluid out of the fat cell and through the opening. In addition, by applying ultrasound energy to fat cells to increase the temperature to between 43 degrees and 49 degrees, cell apoptosis can be realized, thereby resulting in reduction of fat.

Described herein are systems and methods for tracking a target tissue during therapy delivery. A system for identifying an anatomical structure and tracking the motion of the anatomical structure using imaging before and during delivery of a therapy to a patient includes an imaging module and a therapy module. In some cases, the imaging module is configured to identify a region of the anatomical structure in an image, and the therapy module is configured to deliver the therapy to a target tissue. A method for imaging during delivery of a therapy includes acquiring an image, identifying a region of an anatomical structure, tracking the region of the anatomical structure, integrating the tracking, generating a unique template library, determining if a pre-existing template matches the results or if the results should be updated as a new template, and delivering the therapy to the target tissue.

A method of localizing and preferably visualizing a vein within a limb, preferably within a leg, of a patient, with an imaging device. The method includes the following steps of: fully or partially collapsing at least a segment of the vein to be localized at a collapsing site during a collapsing step; inducing blood flow within the vein at the collapsing site, while the segment of the vein is fully or partially collapsed, during a pumping step; and visualizing the collapsing site with the imaging device in an imaging step, at least during the pumping step.

Various approaches for enhancing treatment of target tissue using a source of focused ultrasound while limiting damage to non-target tissue include selecting a frequency of ultrasound waves transmitted from the source of focused ultrasound for generating a focus in the target tissue; providing microbubbles having the first size distribution such that at least 50% of the microbubbles have a radius smaller than a critical radius corresponding to a resonance frequency matching the selected frequency of ultrasound waves; and applying the ultrasound waves at the selected frequency to treat the target tissue.

Various approaches for disrupting target tissue for treatment include identifying a target volume of the target tissue; causing disruption of the target tissue in a region corresponding to the target volume so as to increase tissue permeability therein; computationally generating a tissue permeability map of the target volume; and based on the tissue permeability map, computationally evaluating the disruption of the target tissue within the target volume.

Techniques for modulating peripheral nerves using focused ultrasound (FUS) are provided. Methods include locating a peripheral nerve in a subject using an imaging probe, providing a FUS having one or more ultrasound parameters to a location on the peripheral nerve, and modulating the peripheral nerve. The methods can further include eliciting and measuring a physiological response from the FUS modulation, generating tissue deformation in the vicinity of the FUS modulation, and imaging the nerve and the tissue deformation simultaneously with FUS modulation. Systems for use in the modulation of peripheral nerves are also provided.

A probe for ultrasound treatment of skin laxity are provided. Systems and methods can include ultrasound imaging of the region of interest for localization of the treatment area, delivering ultrasound energy at a depth and pattern to achieve the desired therapeutic effects, and/or monitoring the treatment area to assess the results and/or provide feedback. In an embodiment, a treatment system and method can be configured for producing arrays of sub-millimeter and larger zones of thermal ablation to treat the epidermal, superficial dermal, mid-dermal or deep dermal components of tissue.

Various approaches to creating a treatment plan for a target include using the first imaging modality to acquire one or more images of the target during a time interval and based thereon determining information associated with the target; also during the time interval, using the second imaging modality having a higher rate of image capture than the first imaging modality to acquire a series of images of the first imageable object that has a relative location with respect to the target; in real time during the time interval, tracking movement of the anatomical target based on the one or more images thereof, the series of images of the first imageable object and the relative location of the first imageable object with respect to the target; and based at least in part on the tracked movement and the information associated with the anatomical target during the time interval, generating a treatment plan for treating the target.

A method and system for secure ultrasound treatment of living tissues using an ultrasound probe comprising a reflective cavity in acoustic communication with living tissues, a transducer to emit an ultrasound wave in the reflective cavity and a transducer to acquire a backscattered signal in the reflective cavity. The method comprises the steps of a) emitting a first ultrasound wave in the reflective cavity that generates a backscattered ultrasound wave in the reflective cavity, b) acquiring a backscattered signal in the reflective cavity, c) determining whether an insonification can be safely performed by computing a similarity value between the backscattered signal and a predefined reference signal, and d) if an insonification can be safely performed, treating the living tissues with a second ultrasound wave emitted in the reflective cavity. The second ultrasound wave is focused a target point of the living tissues and generates a pressure point resulting in cavitation at this target point.

According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, a system for supporting a skin treatment using ultrasound comprises a treatment map management unit configured to determine an ultrasonic treatment map of at least one of a treatment intensity, a treatment number and a treatment depth for at least one skin section of a user with reference to skin condition information including information about at least one of moisture content and wrinkles of the user's skin; a guide providing unit configured to provide the user with a guide for treatment based on the determined ultrasonic treatment map; and a monitoring management unit configured to monitor whether the user follows the guide with reference to treatment action information of the user according to the provided guide.