Key Points
- The 5th annual Focused Ultrasound Neuromodulation (FUN) Meeting was held July 11–13, 2024, in Toronto.
- Attendees learned the latest advances in the use of focused ultrasound for neuromodulation.
The Focused Ultrasound Neuromodulation (FUN) 2024 conference took place July 11–13 in Toronto. Drawing approximately 150 in-person attendees, the conference provided a platform for presenting and discussing the latest preclinical and clinical advances in focused ultrasound neuromodulation. The agenda, which was designed around 15-minute-long presentations with dedicated time for discussion, encouraged lively dialogue. FUN is organized by the International Transcranial Ultrasonic Stimulation Safety and Standards (iTRUSST) Consortium.
Access all oral and poster presentations on the FUN 2024 website.
On Saturday, July 13, Brainbox sponsored a hands-on workshop where attendees were divided into three groups and rotated through the following experiences:
- Fundamentals of Transcranial Ultrasound Stimulation (TUS) with Kim Butts Pauly, PhD, from Stanford University
- TUS – Physiological Effects, Advantages and Limitations, and Study Design by Robert Chen, MBBChir, from the University of Toronto
- Planning for Ultrasound Neuromodulation: Modelling and Neuronavigation by Samuel Pichardo, PhD, from the University of Calgary
The Foundation’s senior consultant, Mark Carol, MD, delivered a presentation (Abstract C8) on regulatory and reimbursement challenges in the United States for transcranial ultrasound. Dr. Carol’s talk covered the potential for a general claim indication for neuromodulation, while stressing the importance of establishing clinical trial guidelines and advocating for practical pricing models for disposables. As follow-up, Dr. Carol and Emily White, MD, the Foundation’s managing director of operations and FUS Partners, held a Zoom session with about a dozen FUN attendees to collaboratively explore how to advance these initiatives.
“My presentation was well received and generated a lot of discussion during and after the talk,” said Dr. Carol. “All of the presentations and posters provided valuable insights into the state of the field for focused ultrasound–based neuromodulation, the future it holds, and the challenges it faces to realize that future.”
One invited presentation that stood out to Dr. Carol was given by Daisy Thompson-Lake, PhD, from the Rockefeller Neuroscience Institute at West Virginia University. Dr. Thompson-Lake shared early data from a clinical trial using low-intensity focused ultrasound to treat opioid addiction. Targeting the nucleus accumbens, the study enrolled 12 patients and demonstrated a durable reduction in opioid cravings lasting up to 90 days. According to Dr. Thompson-Lake, this marked the first intervention that brought renewed hope to patients, many of whom had previously seen no viable options. She noted that the patients were requesting retreatment.
Right before the meeting, iTRUSST published a new consensus paper, “A Practical Guide to Transcranial Ultrasonic Stimulation from the IFCN-endorsed ITRUSST Consortium,” on the arXiv open-access archive.
The Focused Ultrasound Foundation was one of the event sponsors.
Details for the FUN 2025 meeting in Hong Kong are expected to be announced soon. Join the iTRUSST and FUN mailing list (itrusst@googlegroups.com) through the Google Groups interface or via email to lennart.verhagen@donders.ru.nl. A Gmail account is not required for Google Groups, but the interface is blocked by some spam filters.