Cutting edge acoustics. Non-invasive surgery using ultrasound

Focused ultrasound surgery is a procedure whereby high-power ultrasound is pinpointed into the body. At high enough intensities, the tissue at the focus can be thermally burned or mechanically destroyed. Tissue in front or behind the focus is not affected since the intensity is much lower. This results in less overall internal trauma; i.e., faster healing. The goal at the Focused Ultrasound Surgery Lab at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, MA is to use this technique to non-invasively treat tumors. This could eliminate the need for surgically removing tissue, thus offering the patient a blood-free alternative. More importantly, it could offer a cure to those patients whose illness cannot be treated by traditional surgery. Time will tell what therapeutic ultrasound's impact will have in treating disease in the long term. Nevertheless, the medical profession's desire for less invasive treatments has grown tremendously. As a result, ultrasound's preliminary success indicates that using therapeutic ultrasound will increasingly benefit patients.