Ultrasonic neuromodulation of deep grey matter structures for the non-invasive treatment of neurological disorders
Lead Research Organisation:
University College London
Department Name: Medical Physics and Biomedical Eng
Abstract
The structures in the centre of the brain (often referred to as the deep grey matter structures) are vitally important to our ability to perform everyday tasks. This includes processing and passing on information from our senses, regulating consciousness and sleep, and the control of voluntary movement and coordination. Abnormalities in the deep grey matter structures can lead to a wide range of neurological disorders. Some examples are Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, chronic pain, and essential tremor. These disorders are extremely debilitating, and have a significant impact on quality of life for patients and their carers. Neurological conditions are also very common, and form the largest single cause of morbidity in the EU in terms of disability adjusted life years. In the UK alone, approximately 10 million people are affected, with 350,000 needing some form of full time care.
Currently, most neurological disorders are treated by the prescription of drugs that cause alterations in brain function. These drugs act on the structures that transmit electrical and chemical signals in the brain. For many patients, this causes a reduction in their symptoms. However, long-term treatment is often not very effective, and there can be many side-effects. For some patients with advanced or drug-resistant disorders, a surgical procedure known as deep brain stimulation may also be offered. This involves putting a small wire into the brain via holes drilled through the skull. This can be very effective, but is highly invasive, and only available to a small number of patients.
An exciting alternative to drugs and surgery is brain stimulation using ultrasound. Ultrasound is well known as a diagnostic imaging tool, particularly during pregnancy. In recent years, a growing number of therapeutic applications of ultrasound have also been demonstrated, including for stimulating the brain. This is possible because the mechanical vibrations caused by ultrasound waves can generate internal forces that act on the brain cells. Depending on the pattern of the ultrasound pulses, this can cause the generation or suppression of electrical signals in the brain, which in turn can be used to restore normal brain function. However, until now, ultrasound brain stimulation has only been demonstrated on small animals and in superficial areas of the human brain.
The aim of this proposal is to develop a new type of ultrasound device to deliver ultrasound waves non-invasively into the deep grey matter structures of the brain to treat neurological disorders. The device will contain hundreds of individual ultrasound transmitters distributed in a ring array positioned on the patient's head. The arrangement of the transmitters will be optimised to ensure ultrasound can be focused into the deep brain without affecting other areas of brain circuitry. The ultrasound device will be coupled with a computer planning system that uses a detailed mathematical model of how ultrasound waves propagate through the skull and brain. This will be used to position the ultrasound beam precisely based on images of the patient's anatomy. After development, the system will be rigorously tested in the laboratory using 3D printed skull phantoms, before being tested on adult human volunteers.
Success in this project will be a major breakthrough in the treatment of neurological disorders. The developed system will be completely non-invasive, and allow the stimulation, suppression, and modulation of the neural circuitry in deep grey matter structures with unprecedented accuracy and flexibility. This will ultimately improve our understanding of deep brain function and associated neurodegenerative diseases, as well as underpin the development of ground-breaking new clinical treatments. The low-cost and scalable nature of the technology also means it could be widely deployed, greatly increasing the number of patients that have access to non-pharmacological treatments.
Currently, most neurological disorders are treated by the prescription of drugs that cause alterations in brain function. These drugs act on the structures that transmit electrical and chemical signals in the brain. For many patients, this causes a reduction in their symptoms. However, long-term treatment is often not very effective, and there can be many side-effects. For some patients with advanced or drug-resistant disorders, a surgical procedure known as deep brain stimulation may also be offered. This involves putting a small wire into the brain via holes drilled through the skull. This can be very effective, but is highly invasive, and only available to a small number of patients.
An exciting alternative to drugs and surgery is brain stimulation using ultrasound. Ultrasound is well known as a diagnostic imaging tool, particularly during pregnancy. In recent years, a growing number of therapeutic applications of ultrasound have also been demonstrated, including for stimulating the brain. This is possible because the mechanical vibrations caused by ultrasound waves can generate internal forces that act on the brain cells. Depending on the pattern of the ultrasound pulses, this can cause the generation or suppression of electrical signals in the brain, which in turn can be used to restore normal brain function. However, until now, ultrasound brain stimulation has only been demonstrated on small animals and in superficial areas of the human brain.
The aim of this proposal is to develop a new type of ultrasound device to deliver ultrasound waves non-invasively into the deep grey matter structures of the brain to treat neurological disorders. The device will contain hundreds of individual ultrasound transmitters distributed in a ring array positioned on the patient's head. The arrangement of the transmitters will be optimised to ensure ultrasound can be focused into the deep brain without affecting other areas of brain circuitry. The ultrasound device will be coupled with a computer planning system that uses a detailed mathematical model of how ultrasound waves propagate through the skull and brain. This will be used to position the ultrasound beam precisely based on images of the patient's anatomy. After development, the system will be rigorously tested in the laboratory using 3D printed skull phantoms, before being tested on adult human volunteers.
Success in this project will be a major breakthrough in the treatment of neurological disorders. The developed system will be completely non-invasive, and allow the stimulation, suppression, and modulation of the neural circuitry in deep grey matter structures with unprecedented accuracy and flexibility. This will ultimately improve our understanding of deep brain function and associated neurodegenerative diseases, as well as underpin the development of ground-breaking new clinical treatments. The low-cost and scalable nature of the technology also means it could be widely deployed, greatly increasing the number of patients that have access to non-pharmacological treatments.
Planned Impact
The direct beneficiaries of this project are patients suffering neurological conditions associated with the deep grey matter structures in the brain. This covers a wide spectrum of disorders, including Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, chronic pain, tremor, and dystonia. These disorders are extremely debilitating and have a significant impact on quality of life for both patients and their carers. Taken together, neurological conditions comprise the largest single cause of morbidity in the EU in terms of disability adjusted life years. This has clear implications for healthcare budgets and the economy more broadly. The number of people affected is also continuing to grow as the UK population ages. This has been described as a "neurological time-bomb" by the UK Neurological Alliance.
Coupled with the appropriate therapeutic hardware and treatment planning protocols, ultrasonic neuromodulation and stimulation (US-NMS) offers the potential to be a paradigm-shifting advance in the treatment and management of neurological disorders. The proposed therapy is completely unique in allowing non-invasive treatments in the deep brain with high targeting specificity on the scale of discrete neural structures. Moreover, US-NMS can be delivered as a day procedure, and the site of stimulation is not fixed. This means the exact clinical target can be fine-tuned and altered over the course of therapy to maximise clinical benefit, without additional risk to the patient. The low-cost and scalable nature of the technology also means it could be deployed throughout the NHS, greatly increasing the number of patients that have access to non-pharmacological treatments. In the context of delivering value-based healthcare, these tools could also play a significant role in decreasing procedural costs and optimising clinical outcomes.
The radically enhanced capabilities and scope for neuromodulation and stimulation in the deep brain offered by US-NMS will provide a significant competitive edge over other devices currently used for brain stimulation (the current global market for neurological devices is >$3.8 billion). These advances will make the developed US-NMS system commercially attractive to medical device manufacturers. The proposed US-NMS technology is expected to pave the way for a multitude of new neurological treatments in the deep brain over a 5-10 year time scale. It is expected the generated IP will lead to licensing agreements or the development of new start-ups, with the UK becoming a base for future international investment. The developed treatment delivery and planning tools will also act as a platform technology for wide-reaching investigations into brain function and novel neurological therapies.
Coupled with the appropriate therapeutic hardware and treatment planning protocols, ultrasonic neuromodulation and stimulation (US-NMS) offers the potential to be a paradigm-shifting advance in the treatment and management of neurological disorders. The proposed therapy is completely unique in allowing non-invasive treatments in the deep brain with high targeting specificity on the scale of discrete neural structures. Moreover, US-NMS can be delivered as a day procedure, and the site of stimulation is not fixed. This means the exact clinical target can be fine-tuned and altered over the course of therapy to maximise clinical benefit, without additional risk to the patient. The low-cost and scalable nature of the technology also means it could be deployed throughout the NHS, greatly increasing the number of patients that have access to non-pharmacological treatments. In the context of delivering value-based healthcare, these tools could also play a significant role in decreasing procedural costs and optimising clinical outcomes.
The radically enhanced capabilities and scope for neuromodulation and stimulation in the deep brain offered by US-NMS will provide a significant competitive edge over other devices currently used for brain stimulation (the current global market for neurological devices is >$3.8 billion). These advances will make the developed US-NMS system commercially attractive to medical device manufacturers. The proposed US-NMS technology is expected to pave the way for a multitude of new neurological treatments in the deep brain over a 5-10 year time scale. It is expected the generated IP will lead to licensing agreements or the development of new start-ups, with the UK becoming a base for future international investment. The developed treatment delivery and planning tools will also act as a platform technology for wide-reaching investigations into brain function and novel neurological therapies.
Organisations
Publications
Robertson JL
(2017)
Accurate simulation of transcranial ultrasound propagation for ultrasonic neuromodulation and stimulation.
in The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Treeby B
(2018)
Equivalent-Source Acoustic Holography for Projecting Measured Ultrasound Fields Through Complex Media.
in IEEE transactions on ultrasonics, ferroelectrics, and frequency control
Treeby B
(2018)
Nonstandard Fourier Pseudospectral Time Domain (PSTD) Schemes for Partial Differential Equations
in Communications in Computational Physics
Treeby BE
(2020)
Nonlinear ultrasound simulation in an axisymmetric coordinate system using a k-space pseudospectral method.
in The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Treeby BE
(2018)
Rapid calculation of acoustic fields from arbitrary continuous-wave sources.
in The Journal of the Acoustical Society of America
Wise E
(2020)
Pseudospectral Time-Domain (PSTD) Methods for the Wave Equation: Realizing Boundary Conditions with Discrete Sine and Cosine Transforms
in Journal of Theoretical and Computational Acoustics
Wise E
(2017)
Mesh Density Functions Based on Local Bandwidth Applied to Moving Mesh Methods
in Communications in Computational Physics
| Description | The aim of this proposal was to develop a new type of ultrasound device to deliver ultrasound waves non-invasively into the deep grey matter structures of the brain to treat neurological disorders. This was a joint project between UCL and Oxford, with UCL delivering the engineering, and Oxford performing the neuroscience studies. The UCL component of the project is now complete and we have developed a highly novel device for ultrasound stimulation in the deep brain. This covers many innovations. First, the individual ultrasound transmitters were designed and manufactured, and the acoustic and MR performance experimentally tested. Second, a comprehensive simulation study was conducted to optimise the arrangement of the transmitters to ensure ultrasound can be focused into the deep brain without affecting other areas of brain circuitry. This design was then realised and manufactured. Third, a custom patient-specific positioning system was designed and tested for repeated positioning. This holds the patients still (<1 mm movement) while positioned within the device. Fourth, software to plan the treatments and control the driving electronics was written and tested. Fifth, approaches to automatically obtain maps of the patients skull and anatomy were investigated. Sixth, system integration was performed using phantom skulls to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of the device. We are now awaiting ethics approval to conduct first-in-human trials in Oxford. |
| Exploitation Route | The developed hardware and treatment planning protocols have the potential to offer a paradigm-shifting advance in the treatment and management of neurological disorders. We have received significant interest from neuroscientists about the use of the technology for a wide range of applications, and have filed two patents. The developed software tools are likely to generate impact both on the targeted delivery of ultrasound therapy, as well as academics working to understand wave physics and ultrasound metrology. This impact is likely to come about through our open-source software releases, as well as the development of new modelling and domain decomposition approaches that can be applied in many other fields. |
| Sectors | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Healthcare,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology |
| Description | The primary outcome from this grant is the development of a novel device for targeted ultrasound stimulation of deep brain structures. The device contains many innovations that allow the precision delivery of a specified ultrasound dose to a specified target. The device is currently being tested in a first-in-human study, with details to be published soon. The acoustic models developed as part of this grant are being used by ultrasound and acoustic companies in the private sector, including for transducer design, image reconstruction, and ultrasound dose calculations. |
| First Year Of Impact | 2020 |
| Sector | Digital/Communication/Information Technologies (including Software),Education,Healthcare,Manufacturing, including Industrial Biotechology |
| Impact Types | Economic |
| Description | Capital Award for Core Equipment at UCL |
| Amount | £650,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/T023651/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 11/2019 |
| End | 05/2021 |
| Description | Capital Award for Core Equipment at UCL |
| Amount | £650,000 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/T023651/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 11/2019 |
| End | 05/2021 |
| Description | From the cluster to the clinic: Real-time treatment planning for transcranial ultrasound therapy using deep learning (Ext.) |
| Amount | £952,159 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/S026371/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 08/2019 |
| End | 08/2022 |
| Description | Spectral element methods for fractional differential equations, with applications in applied analysis and medical imaging |
| Amount | £103,887 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EP/T022280/1 |
| Organisation | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) |
| Sector | Public |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 07/2021 |
| End | 06/2024 |
| Description | UCL Knowledge Exchange and Innovation Fund |
| Amount | £86,087 (GBP) |
| Funding ID | EPSRC IAA 2017-20 Discovery-To-Use |
| Organisation | University College London |
| Sector | Academic/University |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Start | 01/2021 |
| End | 12/2021 |
| Title | Experimental Assessment of Skull Aberration and Transmission Loss at 270 kHz for Focused Ultrasound Stimulation of the Primary Visual Cortex |
| Description | This data was collected in order to assess acoustic field aberrations and transmission loss induced by human skulls in the context of focused ultrasound stimulation of the primary visual cortex (V1) region of the brain. A 2 element spherically focusing annular array ultrasound transducer (H115, driven at 270 kHz, Sonic Concepts) was used to generate an acoustic field. Measurements were performed with a 0.2 mm PVDF needle hydrophone (Precision Acoustics) with right angle connector to reduce its length so it could be accommodated within the skull cavity. The transducer was driven under quasi continuous wave conditions at low drive level to produce a linear field. The transducer was held in a fixed position, the skull was positioned to obtain the correct focal alignment and the hydrophone was held in a 3D printed mount with manual alignment in the axial direction and automated scanning in the lateral directions. Measurements were performed inside 3 human skulls which had previously had the superior section of the parietal and frontal bones removed. Measurements were made with the transducer positioned at two locations for each skull corresponding to the focal region intersecting with the positions of the left and right V1 regions of the brain, with a 1 cm separation between source and skull. For each position, the hydrophone was aligned with the focus inside the skull, then a planar scan was performed covering the largest possible area while avoiding collision of the hydrophone with the skull bone. The skull was then removed and a 2nd scan was performed in water as a reference, the axial position was determined from time of flight in free field during these reference water scans. The study consists of 6 datasets, each of which contains a planar scan made within the skull cavity, and a reference planar scan in water after the skull was removed, preserving the coordinates. File 1: skull 2120, left V1 File 2: skull 2120, right V1 File 3: skull 2150, left V1 File 4: skull 2150, right V1 File 5: skull 2125, left V1 File 6: skull 2125, right V1 |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Experimental measurements are critical for the development of medical ultrasound software and devices, including for validation of modelling tools and for comparison of measurement equipment and protocols. Data sharing encourages reproducibility and consistency across labs, and provides access to other researchers who may not have the equipment or expertise to conduct their own measurements. |
| URL | https://rdr.ucl.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Experimental_Assessment_of_Skull_Aberration_and_Transmission_... |
| Title | Experimental Validation of k-Wave: Nonlinear Wave Propagation in Layered, Absorbing Fluid Media |
| Description | The data was collected for characterisation of the source, a single element spherically focusing ultrasound transducer driven with a 4 cycle burst at 1.1 MHz (H151, Sonic Concepts), and validation of simulation of the source propagating into water at a number of different drive levels. Measurements were also made for experimental validation of simulation of a nonlinear ultrasound field propagating through planar and wedge shaped glycerol filled phantoms. All measurements were made with a PVDF needle hydrophone in an automated scanning tank. The study data contains 3 files: 1 containing measurements made in water, 1 with a planar glycerol filled phantom and 1 with a wedge shaped glycerol filled phantom. File 1, medium: water only: Axial scans cover 30 to 200 mm, lateral scans cover -20 to 20 mm. 1: XY planar scan for source characterisation at low drive level, measured at z = 40 mm over a 52 by 52 mm plane. 2 - 7: Axial scans from 30 to 200 mm, at the lowest drive level (as used in 1), 6 repeats. (Fig 2,3) 8: lateral scan, level 1 (Fig 2,3) 9-11: Axial scans, level 2 (Fig 3) 12-13: lateral scans level 2 (Fig 3) 14-16: axial scans level 3 (Fig 3) 17-18: lateral scans level 3 (Fig 3) 19-21: axial scans level 4 (Fig 3) 22-23: lateral scans level 4 (Fig 3) 24-26: Axial scans level 5 (Fig 3) 27-28: lateral scans level 5 (Fig 3) 29-33: axial scans level 6 (Figs 3, 4) 34-38: lateral scans level 6 (Figs 3, 4) File 2: medium: water background with planar glycerol phantom 1: XZ planar scan from x = -20 mm to 20 mm, z = 60 to 200 mm (beyond phantom) (Figs 5-7) File 3: medium: water background with wedge shaped glycerol phantom 1: XZ planar scan from x = -20 to 20 mm, z = 70 to 200 mm (beyond phantom) (Figs 8-10) |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Experimental measurements are critical for the development of medical ultrasound software and devices, including for validation of modelling tools and for comparison of measurement equipment and protocols. Data sharing encourages reproducibility and consistency across labs, and provides access to other researchers who may not have the equipment or expertise to conduct their own measurements. |
| URL | https://rdr.ucl.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Experimental_Validation_of_k-Wave_Nonlinear_Wave_Propagation_... |
| Title | Rapid Spatial Mapping of Focused Ultrasound Fields Using a Planar Fabry-Pérot Sensor |
| Description | The data was acquired in order to investigate the potential of a robust planar Fabry-Pérot sensor for measurement of high acoustic pressures. The sensor was formed from all hard dielectric materials, and designed to operate at 1550 nm, coupled with a C-L (1516-1610 nm) band wavelength tunable laser and rapid scanning system. A set of measurements of the field of a single element spherically focusing HIFU transducer (H101, Sonic Concepts) driven at 1.1 MHz with a 4 cycle burst, was made with the sensor at a variety of drive levels, which at the lower end was compared against hydrophone measurements (0.2 mm PVDF needle hydrophone, Precision Acoustics), and at the higher end was beyond the damage threshold of conventional commercially available PVDF hydrophones, and was compared with KZK simulations of the field. Volume scans were also performed to demonstrate the feasibility of these given the rapid scan times. The transducer was mounted pointing downwards into a small temperature controlled tank filled with degassed, deionised water, with manually adjustable xyz position. The Fabry-Perot sensor was mounted in the bottom of the tank in a fixed position, and measurements were taken over the sensor area by scanning the interrogation laser beam. The directional frequency response of the sensor is included in the frequency response field in the sensor dataset. This has size [1002, 978, 3], where [:, 1, :] contains the frequency, [1, :, :] contains the angles, [2:end, 2:end , 1] is the magnitude response, [2:end, 2:end, 2] is the phase response, and [2:end, 2:end, 3] is the smoothed/corrected magnitude correction (1/mag response) that as applied to the data. In total, this records contains 5 data files: 1. Planar field scan acquired with the Fabry Perot sensor at the focal plane at low level, for comparison with hydrophone scans (Fig4). 2. Planar scans at the focal plane at three drive levels (Fig 5). 3. Small area planar scans at the focal plane at 22 different drive levels, 6 repeats up to level 13, 3 repeats at levels 13-22: 94 datasets (Fig 6). 4. Planar scans at three different axial positions at an intermediate drive level. (Fig 7). 5. Hydrophone scans: a planar scan used to define the source boundary condition for KZK simulations performed as a comparison with scans in file 2. A lateral line scan acquired for comparison with the Fabry-Perot scan in file 1. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Experimental measurements are critical for the development of medical ultrasound software and devices, including for validation of modelling tools and for comparison of measurement equipment and protocols. Data sharing encourages reproducibility and consistency across labs, and provides access to other researchers who may not have the equipment or expertise to conduct their own measurements. |
| URL | https://rdr.ucl.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Rapid_Spatial_Mapping_of_Focused_Ultrasound_Fields_Using_a_Pl... |
| Title | Repeatability and reproducibility of hydrophone measurements of medical ultrasound fields |
| Description | This data was collected in order to study the repeatability and reproducibility of hydrophone measurements of ultrasound fields. Sets of independent measurements were made with two probe (0.2 mm, 40 µm) and two membrane hydrophones (0.4 mm, 0.2 mm differential) (all from Precision Acoustics) to examine the repeatability of measurements. The pressures measured by these hydrophones in three different ultrasound fields, with both linear and nonlinear, pulsed and steady state driving conditions, were acquired to assess the reproducibility of measurements between hydrophones. Repeatability measurements: Sets of five independent measurements were made with each hydrophone of the field generated by a single element focusing bowl transducer (Sonic Concepts H151) driven at a frequency of 1.1 MHz, with both a 4 cycle burst and under quasi steady state conditions. Axial and lateral line scans passing through the focus were acquired at a drive level which generated a weakly nonlinear field. Reproducibility measurements: Two single element focusing bowl transducers (H151 at 1.1 MHz, and H101 at 3.3 MHz, Sonic Concepts) and one diagnostic linear array (L14-5 at 5 MHz, Ultrasonix) sources were used. For the single element transducers, axial and lateral line scans passing through the focus were acquired with each hydrophone at two drive levels to generate both a linear and a weakly nonlinear field, with both a 4 cycle burst and under quasi steady state conditions. For the diagnostic linear array, lateral line scans were acquired passing through the beam axis at an axial distance of 40 mm. The transducer was driven with a 4 cycle burst at a power level that generated harmonics up to 30 MHz.All measurements were acquired using an automated scanning tank filled with degassed, deionised water. The transducers mounted in a fixed xyz position with automated tilt, rotate adjustment. Hydrophones were mounted on an automated xyz stage, with manual tilt, rotate adjustment. In total this study contains 12 datasets, the corresponding figure or table in the paper is given in brackets: 1-4: Repeatability and reproducibility - H151 x 4 hydrophones (Figs 1-4, Table 3) Each dataset contains axial and lateral line scans at 2 drive levels, with a 4 cycle and a 40 cycle burst, with 5 sets of scans at the high drive level and one set of scans at the low drive level 5-8: Reproducibility - H101 x 4 hydrophones (Figs 4-5, Table 3) Each dataset contains a single set of axial and lateral line scan at each of 2 drive levels, with a 4 cycle and a 120 cycle burst. 9-12: Reproducibility - L14-5 x 4 hydrophones (Fig 6, Table 3) Each dataset contains lateral scans at 1 power level. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Experimental measurements are critical for the development of medical ultrasound software and devices, including for validation of modelling tools and for comparison of measurement equipment and protocols. Data sharing encourages reproducibility and consistency across labs, and provides access to other researchers who may not have the equipment or expertise to conduct their own measurements. |
| URL | https://rdr.ucl.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Repeatability_and_reproducibility_of_hydrophone_measurements_... |
| Title | Sensitivity of simulated transcranial ultrasound fields to acoustic medium property maps |
| Description | This data was collected in order to validate models of ultrasound propagation through skull bone phantoms. A single element spherically focusing ultrasound transducer (PA332 at 1 MHz, Precision Acoustics) was used to generate an acoustic field. Measurements were performed with a 0.2 mm PVDF needle hydrophone (Precision Acoustics) to characterise the source under short burst conditions (3 cycles). These measurements include planar scans in the prefocal region in free field for characterisation of the source, and planar scans further from the source after propagation through 3 different bone phantoms: a parametric araldite resin phantom, a mesh based skull bone phantom obtained from a T1 weighted MRI scan of the head, cast in araldite and printed in VeroBlack. Medium maps used in simulations, which match the experimental set up are included as a supplementary file, these include speed of sound, attenuation coefficient and density. The .stl file containing the mesh is also included as a supplementary file. All measurements were acquired using an automated scanning tank filled with degassed, deionised water. The transducer was mounted in a fixed xyz position. Hydrophones were mounted on an automated xyz stage, with manual tilt, rotate adjustment. In total this study contains 5 datasets contained 5 files, the corresponding figure or table in the paper is given in brackets: 1: Free field XY planar transverse scan at z = 45 mm, corresponds to dataset 2, which was performed in the same measurement session. 2. XY planar transverse scan at z = 58 mm after propagation through a parametric araldite 1302 resin phantom. (Fig 13) 3. Free field XY planar transverse scan at 45 mm, corresponds to datasets 4 and 5, which were performed in the same measurement session. 4. Planar transverse scan at z = 85 mm after propagation through a mesh based skull bone phantom cast in araldite 1302. (Fig 14) 5. Planar transverse scan at z = 85 mm after propagation though a mesh based skull bone phantom printed in VeroBlack. (Fig 14) Supplementary files: 6. *_supplementary_01.h5, h5 file containing fields medium1, medium2 and medium3, which contain grid based medium maps (sound speed, attenuation coefficient at 1 MHz, and density), with coordinates and description, for medium1: parametric resin phantom, medium2: mesh based resin phantom, medium3: mesh based VeroBlack phantom. 7. *_supplementary-02.stl, .stl file containing mesh used to construct the anatomical bone phantom |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Experimental measurements are critical for the development of medical ultrasound software and devices, including for validation of modelling tools and for comparison of measurement equipment and protocols. Data sharing encourages reproducibility and consistency across labs, and provides access to other researchers who may not have the equipment or expertise to conduct their own measurements. |
| URL | https://rdr.ucl.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Sensitivity_of_simulated_transcranial_ultrasound_fields_to_ac... |
| Title | Simulating Focused Ultrasound Transducers using Discrete Sources on Regular Cartesian Grids |
| Description | This data was collected in order to validate models of curved sources on cartesian grids. A single element spherically focusing ultrasound transducer (H101 at 1.1 MHz, Sonic Concepts) was used to generate an acoustic field. Measurements were performed with a 0.2 mm PVDF needle hydrophone (Precision Acoustics) to characterise the source under quasi continuous wave and short burst conditions. These measurements include planar scans in the prefocal region for the two driving regimes, and axial scans at the same drive level for both drive regimes. There are additional axial scans at one further higher drive level (very weakly nonlinear) for each of the driving regimes which were acquired for comparison with the model with scaled input source amplitude. All measurements were acquired using an automated scanning tank filled with degassed, deionised water. The transducers mounted in a fixed xyz position with automated tilt, rotate adjustment. Hydrophones were mounted on an automated xyz stage, with manual tilt, rotate adjustment. In total this study contains 6 datasets contained in one file, the corresponding figure or table in the paper is given in brackets: 1: Planar scan with 45 cycle burst (qCW) at z = 42.5 mm, linear field 2: Axial scan 45 cycle burst (qCW), linear field (conditions as in 1), Fig 8, 9. 3: Axial scan 45 cycle burst (qCW), weakly nonlinear field, Fig 8, 9. 4: Planar scan with 4 cycle burst at z = 42.5 mm, linear field 5: Axial scan 4 cycle burst, linear field (conditions as in 4), Fig 10, 11. 6. Axial scan 4 cycle burst, weakly nonlinear field, Fig 10, 11. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Experimental measurements are critical for the development of medical ultrasound software and devices, including for validation of modelling tools and for comparison of measurement equipment and protocols. Data sharing encourages reproducibility and consistency across labs, and provides access to other researchers who may not have the equipment or expertise to conduct their own measurements. |
| URL | https://rdr.ucl.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Simulating_Focused_Ultrasound_Transducers_using_Discrete_Sour... |
| Title | Simulating Focused Ultrasound Transducers using Discrete Sources on Regular Cartesian Grids |
| Description | This data was collected in order to validate models of curved sources on cartesian grids. A single element spherically focusing ultrasound transducer (H101 at 1.1 MHz, Sonic Concepts) was used to generate an acoustic field. Measurements were performed with a 0.2 mm PVDF needle hydrophone (Precision Acoustics) to characterise the source under quasi continuous wave and short burst conditions. These measurements include planar scans in the prefocal region for the two driving regimes, and axial scans at the same drive level for both drive regimes. There are additional axial scans at one further higher drive level (very weakly nonlinear) for each of the driving regimes which were acquired for comparison with the model with scaled input source amplitude. All measurements were acquired using an automated scanning tank filled with degassed, deionised water. The transducers mounted in a fixed xyz position with automated tilt, rotate adjustment. Hydrophones were mounted on an automated xyz stage, with manual tilt, rotate adjustment. In total this study contains 6 datasets contained in one file, the corresponding figure or table in the paper is given in brackets: 1: Planar scan with 45 cycle burst (qCW) at z = 42.5 mm, linear field 2: Axial scan 45 cycle burst (qCW), linear field (conditions as in 1), Fig 8, 9. 3: Axial scan 45 cycle burst (qCW), weakly nonlinear field, Fig 8, 9. 4: Planar scan with 4 cycle burst at z = 42.5 mm, linear field 5: Axial scan 4 cycle burst, linear field (conditions as in 4), Fig 10, 11. 6. Axial scan 4 cycle burst, weakly nonlinear field, Fig 10, 11. |
| Type Of Material | Database/Collection of data |
| Year Produced | 2021 |
| Provided To Others? | Yes |
| Impact | Experimental measurements are critical for the development of medical ultrasound software and devices, including for validation of modelling tools and for comparison of measurement equipment and protocols. Data sharing encourages reproducibility and consistency across labs, and provides access to other researchers who may not have the equipment or expertise to conduct their own measurements. |
| URL | https://rdr.ucl.ac.uk/articles/dataset/Simulating_Focused_Ultrasound_Transducers_using_Discrete_Sour... |
| Title | k-Plan: Ultrasound Therapy Planning |
| Description | k-Plan is an advanced modelling tool for precision planning of transcranial ultrasound procedures. It uses a streamlined and intuitive workflow that allows users to select an ultrasound device, position the device using a template or medical image, and specify the sonication parameters. High-resolution calculations of the ultrasound field and temperature inside the skull and brain are then automatically calculated in the cloud with a single click. |
| Type Of Technology | Software |
| Year Produced | 2022 |
| Impact | k-Plan is developed by researchers at University College London and the Brno University of Technology based on more than a decade of cutting-edge research into ultrasound modelling and planning for transcranial ultrasound therapy. It is the first software tool for model-based treatment planning for ultrasound therapy, and is being brought to market in collaboration with Brainbox, Ltd. |
| URL | https://k-plan.io/ |
| Title | k-Wave Acoustics Toolbox |
| Description | k-Wave is an open source MATLAB toolbox designed for the time-domain simulation of propagating acoustic waves in 1D, 2D, or 3D. The toolbox has a wide range of functionality, but at its heart is an advanced numerical model that can account for both linear and nonlinear wave propagation, an arbitrary distribution of heterogeneous material parameters, and power law acoustic absorption. The numerical model is based on the solution of three coupled first-order partial differential equations which are equivalent to a generalised form of the Westervelt equation. The equations are solved using a k-space pseudospectral method, where spatial gradients are calculated using a Fourier collocation scheme, and temporal gradients are calculated using a k-space corrected finite-difference scheme. The temporal scheme is exact in the limit of linear wave propagation in a homogeneous and lossless medium, and significantly reduces numerical dispersion in the more general case. Power law acoustic absorption is accounted for using a linear integro-differential operator based on the fractional Laplacian. A split-field perfectly matched layer (PML) is used to absorb the waves at the edges of the computational domain. The main advantage of the numerical model used in k-Wave compared to models based on finite-difference time domain (FDTD) schemes is that fewer spatial and temporal grid points are needed for accurate simulations. This means the models run faster and use less memory. Major k-Wave versions were released in 2014, 2017, and 2020. |
| Type Of Technology | Software |
| Year Produced | 2020 |
| Open Source License? | Yes |
| Impact | The toolbox is widely used in academia and industry, and has been used for research into transcranial ultrasound, ultrasound therapy, the development of novel ultrasound sources, photoacoustic imaging, and many other applications. There have been ten releases of the toolbox. It currently has more than 16,000 registered users in 70 countries. A 2010 paper describing the first release of the toolbox has >1400 citations, and the active online user forum has >4500 posts. |