3D Plane-wave ultrasound matrix transducer for carotid artery diagnosis (PUMA)

Cardiovascular diseases including stroke are the second cause of mortality in the Western World. The cause of these diseases is atherosclerosis, the formation of fatty plaques in the arteries. The carotid arteries are known to develop atherosclerotic plaques, which form an important cause of stroke and TIAs. Also, the condition of the carotid arteries is a good indicator for progress of atherosclerosis in the whole body. Therefore a precise, fast and safe diagnostic system for the carotid arteries is of utmost importance for prevention of stroke and other cardiovascular events.

In this project, a very powerful, three-dimensional (3D) ultrasound system for real-time imaging of the carotid arteries will be developed. A high-density ultrasound matrix probe with integrated electronics for fast scanning of the 3D volume up to 1000 volumes/s will be designed together with dedicated algorithms resulting in velocity profiles of wall, blood and plaques with (sub) mm spatial resolution and (sub) millisecond time resolution. Such a system will revolutionize diagnosis and treatment of carotid stenosis and can be used for monitoring of atherosclerosis.