Here is another good article. Unfortunately, I don't
know where i got it from or when it was dated. The info
however is still valid.
Physicians use ultrasound to determine the health of a pregnant woman's growing fetus. Likewise, heart surgeons use ultrasound to create a picture of the insides of blood vessels.
Ultrasound technology, shrunken to fit on tiny medical instruments that can enter blood vessels, has made it possible to get precise pictures of arterial walls.
The pictures show plaque, fat and cholesterol inside blood vessels in varying shades of black, white and gray. Doctors can see how much of the vessel wall is calcium, which glows white, and how much is fat, which looks dark gray on the ultrasound monitor. This technology helps doctors prescribe accurate treatment.
EndoSonics Corp. makes catheters that it claims are the most advanced ultrasound technology for use with blood vessels. The Pleasanton, Calif., firm makes catheters with 64 individual transducers that bounce high-frequency sound waves into the body.
The machine, called the Oracle Imaging System, that receives these signals can interpret and create a clearer picture of the vessel lining than competing products, said Jeff Barnes, analyst at Needham & Co.
''You see an entire cross-section of the artery - every bit of disease,'' said vice president Cliff Varney. ''The bottom line is that ultrasound gives you the ability to see clearly what needs to be done and what has been done.''
Getting a clear picture of the artery can protect patients from potentially life-threatening situations. For example, a surgeon who places stents - or tiny chicken-wire shaped material -against blood vessels to hold the walls open must make sure the stents are tacked on securely. If any part of the stent dangles off of a vessel wall, blood clots can form.
A videocassette machine records the procedure and attached printers produce a hard copy. The system also measures the diameter of the artery and compares it to a normal artery. This tells surgeons in real time how the angioplasty is moving along.
Barnes said that EndoSonics' approach is unusual. The company's device has 64 transducers fixed on its head, while rivals rely on a single transducer that turns around in a circle inside the vessel.
The company has in the past criticized catheters with rotating transducers, saying that they can cause measurement inaccuracies of up to 20%.
The stock, priced near 16, trades by ESON.
CardioVascular Dynamics Inc., a unit of EndoSonics, announced its own FDA approval early last month. CVD received approval to market its FACT coronary balloon angioplasty catheters in the U.S.
These catheters are based on improved balloon technology. In angioplasties, balloon catheters are inserted into blood vessels and the balloons are inflated and deflated several times to widen the arteries where there is too much plaque blocking blood flow.
These FACT catheters use specialized balloons. The middle section of the balloons inflate more than the rest of the balloon. This allows the surgeon to manipulate the balloon so that certain parts of the blood vessel receives more pressure than others.
Healthy blood vessel tissue cannot be overly stretched. Complications can occur and cause the blood vessels to close up again. These special balloon catheters can be used to stretch only the parts of vessels that have lesions. |
