Changzhu Jin, PhD, who completed summer internships at the Foundation in 2015 and 2016, is the lead author on a recent technical brain program publication.
Because the characteristics of the bone in the skull can make sound waves change direction when focused ultrasound is applied to the brain, the beams must go through an adjustment called “phase correction” to prevent them from shifting away from the intended target. If available, a correction toolkit for transcranial focused ultrasound would give physicians options for improving focus, which would then improve treatment outcomes.Dr. Jin and the brain tech team set out to develop such tools. Their final product improved the peak pressure at the focal spot and while only taking 402 milliseconds prior to each sonication to calculate. The resulting software program is accurate enough to be used in a clinical environment and it is free and available for open use.
“This work and its publication were fully supported by the Foundation,” said Dong-Guk Paeng, PhD, the Foundation’s first Merkin Scholar. “I expect it to accelerate Kranion's usage for treatment planning and verification…and Dr. Jin and I have future plans to continue to add tools to this kit.”
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