Georgia Tech inventors have designed an ultra-miniature, intra-cardiac imaging system that provides real-time, full-volume 3D ultrasound.The system integrates full 3D transmit and low noise receive front end electronics, as well as radio frequency output multiplexing on a single silicone. The design can be implemented into a low profile steerable intra-cardiac catheter for operation under MRI or x-ray guidance. The proposed system enables real-time full-volume visualization of cardiac structures while avoiding radiation exposure. Enhanced visualization and catheter manipulation will simplify and shorten current procedures to improve success, reduce complications, and decrease costs. It can also enable new procedures not currently possible without surgery.
- Provides real-time full-volume visualization of cardiac structures
- Enhances image guidance of complex catheter-based cardiovascular treatments
- Avoids radiation exposure
- Allows current procedures to be performed more safely and efficiently
- Enables novel procedures that otherwise might require surgical repair.
- Ultrasound imaging systems
Structural heart disease refers to non-coronary cardiovascular disease processes and related interventions. There have been tremendous advances in both the understanding of these processes and the therapeutic modalities aimed to treat them. Nonsurgical repair of structural heart disease is possible using image guidance. However, commercially available 2D and limited-volume 3D intracardiac ultrasound catheters do not provide suitable full-volume images of complex cardiac structures, do not adequately depict real-time navigation of catheter tips and shafts, and require adjunctive x-ray guidance. The global structural heart imaging market is expected to reach $25.3 billion by 2025.