Cardiovascular applications of ultrasonic contrast media

Recent experiments have demonstrated the potential of an ultrasonic contrast agent, Albunex, for quantifying organ perfusion and measuring blood flow. A series of in vivo experiments performed on exposed hearts of four dogs using a modified real-time scanner show a linear relationship between the measured myocardial integrated backscatter and the dose of Albunex injected when ultrasonic backscatter from myocardium is monitored as a function of time following the injection of a bolus of Albunex. Results obtained from experiments in a mock flow loop using a high frame rate scanner also show that blood flow velocity in the physiological range can be estimated directly from frame to frame speckle tracking of B-mode images following a bolus injection of Albunex which enhances considerably the signal level from blood