Affiliation:
1. Graduate School of System Design Tokyo Metropolitan University, 1‐1 Minami‐Osawa, Hachioji‐shi Tokyo 192‐0397 Japan
Abstract
Fibrosis is a disease that involves an abnormal accumulation of extracellular matrix material such as collagen, leading to organ failure. This type of organ failure accounts for around one‐third of all deaths worldwide. However, since there are no drugs which are curative for this disease, the development of non‐invasive treatment strategies is important. In this study, we developed a method of softening fibrotic tissue using non‐converging ultrasound irradiation, a non‐thermal treatment. The generation of cavitation in a standing wave caused the mechanical strength of the fibrotic tissue to decrease in an irradiation time‐dependent manner. The appearance of the fibrous tissue also changed after irradiation, possibly due to the fracture of collagen fibers by ultrasonic cavitation. This method has the potential to treat a wide range of fibrotic tissues. © 2023 Institute of Electrical Engineer of Japan and Wiley Periodicals LLC.
Subject
Electrical and Electronic Engineering