Abstract #1737

Investigating the Use of Short Pulses in MRI-Guided Focused Ultrasound Disruption of the Blood Brain Barrier

Meaghan O'Reilly¹, Kullervo Hynynen^1,2

¹Imaging Research, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; ²Medical Biophysics, University of Toronto

Short pulses have been previously used to eliminate standing waves in the skull cavity in MR-guided transcranial ultrasound disruption of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) and improve treatment consistency. Parameters related to the use of these short pulses to disrupt the BBB were examined. Disruption of the BBB was performed in rats using sonations as short as 3μs in length at a 1Hz PRF. Mean contrast-enhanced T1w enhancement levels showed a reduced level of BBB disruption for short sonations at low PRF. However, the use of short bursts could substantially reduce treatment times when treatment of large volumes is required.