A Wearable Transcranial Doppler Ultrasound Phased Array System

Objective: Practical deficiencies related to conventional transcranial Doppler (TCD) sonography have restricted its use and applicability. This work seeks to mitigate several such constraints through the development of a wearable, electronically steered TCD velocimetry system, which enables noninvasive measurement of cerebral blood flow velocity (CBFV) for monitoring applications with limited operator interaction. Materials and Methods: A highly-compact, discrete prototype system was designed and experimentally validated through flow phantom and preliminary human subject testing. The prototype system incorporates a custom two-dimensional transducer array and multi-channel transceiver electronics, thereby facilitating acoustic beamformation via phased array operation. Electronic steering of acoustic energy enables algorithmic system controls to map Doppler power throughout the tissue volume of interest and localize regions of maximal flow. Multi-focal reception permits dynamic vessel position tracking and simultaneous flow velocimetry over the time-course of monitoring. Results: Experimental flow phantom testing yielded high correlation with concurrent flowmeter recordings across the expected range of physiological flow velocities. Doppler power mapping has been validated in both flow phantom and preliminary human subject testing, resulting in average vessel location mapping times <14 s. Dynamic vessel tracking has been realized in both flow phantom and preliminary human subject testing. Conclusions: A wearable prototype CBFV measurement system capable of autonomous vessel search and tracking has been presented. Although flow phantom and preliminary human validation show promise, further human subject testing is necessary to compare velocimetry data against existing commercial TCD systems. Additional human subject testing must also verify acceptable vessel search and tracking performance under a variety of subject populations and motion dynamics—such as head movement and ambulation.