Review of Ultrasound as Neurological Treatment

In addition to its imaging applications, ultrasound is increasingly being used as treatment for a number of medical conditions. We are exploring the state of the art of neurostimulation and neuroablation using ultrasound on human tissue and simulation phantoms. Ultrasound focal measurement papers are reviewed in terms of amplitude measurements and deposited ultrasound focused energy. World experience in the matter was represented by 12 reports. The range of deposited energy is 0.002–159 W s, across 12 reports. Focused ultrasound radiation looks promising as a technique for the treatment of neurological diseases, either inhibiting neural activity or performing specific ablations. This is so because the acoustic power required to produce thermal bioeffects is of the order of 1 W cm−2 at any given time.