Dual-frequency acoustic cavitation for noninvasively breaking down a cataractous lens

A preliminary feasibility study on the breaking of a cataractous lens noninvasively through acoustic cavitation is presented. Instead of the conventional invasive method called phacoemulsification, the noninvasive ultrasound sonication scheme was used to generate micro-cracks in the target. For more enhanced cavitation, a dual-frequency approach was employed using the dual-concentric ultrasound transducer capable of simultaneously emitting 1.6 MHz and 4 MHz ultrasound. The dual-frequency ultrasound generated more microcracks in a cataractous porcine lens compared to 1.6 MHz single frequency sonication. This study shows that the proposed noninvasive ultrasound scheme based on dual-frequency acoustic cavitation may be a potentially viable approach for treating cataract in the future.