Focused Ultrasound Therapy
Focused ultrasound is a rapidly evolving, therapeutic technology with the potential to improve the quality of life and decrease the cost of care for patients with autism. This novel technology focuses beams of ultrasound energy precisely and accurately on targets deep in the body without damaging surrounding normal tissue.
How it Works
Where the beams converge, focused ultrasound produces a temporary blood brain barrier disruption that enables therapeutic gene delivery in a small animal model of autism.
There are no curative treatment options autism, and much of the care is supportive. For certain patients, focused ultrasound could provide a much needed, effective treatment option. While significant work has been accomplished, there is still much to be done before this technology will be widely available.
Advantages
- Focused ultrasound is noninvasive, so it does not carry added concerns like surgical wound healing or infection.
- Focused ultrasound can reach the desired target without damaging surrounding tissue.
- It can be repeated, if necessary.
Clinical Trials
At the present time, there are no clinical trials recruiting patients for focused ultrasound treatment of autism.
Regulatory Approval and Reimbursement
Focused ultrasound treatment for autism is not yet approved by regulatory bodies or covered by medical insurance companies
Notable Papers
Shen Y, Li N, Sun S, Dong L, Wang Y, Chang L, Zhang X, Wang F Non-invasive, targeted, and non-viral ultrasound-mediated brain-derived neurotrophic factor plasmid delivery for treatment of autism in a rat model. Front Neurosci. 2022 Sep 1;16:986571. doi: 10.3389/fnins.2022.986571. eCollection 2022.
Click here for additional references from PubMed.
