适用于动脉粥样硬化斑块易损性评估的光声粘弹成像研究

In recent years, cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases have become one of the major diseases that threaten human health. Its pathogenesis is closely related to atherosclerotic vulnerable plaque. Therefore, the early identification of vulnerable plaques that may rupture becomes an important means of screening high-risk patients and active intervention in cardiovascular and cerebrovascular events. This project intends to develop a new method for identifying atherosclerotic vulnerable plaque based on photoacoustic viscoelastic imaging. By revealing the mechanism of photoacoustic effect in viscoelastic biological tissues, the physical model between the time delay of photoacoustic signals and tissue viscoelasticity was constructed, and the mechanism of viscoelasticity detection by photoacoustic methods was elucidated. The system uses high-frequency pulsed laser to efficiently stimulate the photoacoustic signal, and the band-pass filtering technology is used to extract the time delay of the photoacoustic signal to provide the complete morphology and the surface viscoelastic information of the atherosclerotic tissue. By quantitatively analyzing the viscoelasticity changes of plaques at different pathological stages, the development process of atherosclerosis was explained from the perspective of structure, composition, and mechanical properties, and the classification of different types of plaques and the identification of vulnerable plaques were realized. Finally, the establishment of the new system and method for the diagnosis of atherosclerosis and the identification of vulnerable plaques by photoacoustic viscoelasticity imaging is of great significance for the prevention of cardiac-cerebral vascular diseases and the improvement of medical imaging in related field.

近些年，心脑血管疾病已成为威胁人类健康的主要疾病之一，其发病机制与动脉粥样硬化易损斑块密切相关，因此，对可能发生破裂的易损斑块的早期识别，成为筛选高危病人、积极干预心脑血管事件进程的主要手段。本项目拟发展一种基于光声粘弹性成像的动脉粥样硬化易损斑块识别方法。通过构建光声信号与组织粘弹性之间的物理模型，揭示光声效应在粘弹性生物组织中产生时间延迟的机理，进而阐明光声方法实现组织粘弹性检测的机制。实验系统采用高频率脉冲激光高效激发光声信号，结合带通滤波技术提取信号的时间延迟，提供动脉粥样硬化组织的完整形态以及表面粘弹性信息。通过分析不同病理阶段斑块的粘弹性变化，从结构、组分和力学特性的角度阐述动脉粥样硬化的发展过程，实现不同类型斑块的分类以及易损性斑块的识别，最终建立光声粘弹性成像诊断动脉粥样硬化以及识别易损斑块的新系统、新方法，对预防心脑血管疾病的发生、提升相关领域的医学影像水平具有重要意义。

近些年，心脑血管疾病已成为威胁人类健康的主要疾病之一，其发病机制与动脉粥样硬化易损斑块密切相关，因此，对可能发生破裂的易损斑块的早期识别，成为筛选高危病人、积极干预心脑血管事件进程的主要手段。本项目拟发展一种基于光声粘弹性成像的动脉粥样硬化易损斑块识别方法。通过构建光声信号与组织粘弹性之间的物理模型，揭示光声效应在粘弹性生物组织中产生时间延迟的机理，进而阐明光声方法实现组织粘弹性检测的机制。实验系统采用高频率脉冲激光高效激发光声信号，结合带通滤波技术提取信号的时间延迟，提供动脉粥样硬化组织的完整形态以及表面粘弹性信息。通过分析不同病理阶段斑块的粘弹性变化，从结构、组分和力学特性的角度阐述动脉粥样硬化的发展过程，实现不同类型斑块的分类以及易损性斑块的识别，最终建立光声粘弹性成像诊断动脉粥样硬化以及识别易损斑块的新系统、新方法，对预防心脑血管疾病的发生、提升相关领域的医学影像水平具有重要意义。