Italian medical imaging company Esaote, the TU/e researchers started their experiments using plastic tubes, worked their way up to carotid arteries from pigs, and are now performing trials on human subjects.
Using the new technique, blood pressure can be non-invasively measured at any point in the body. The skin in the area is first covered in gel, to maintain a good contact, and then the ultrasound scanner is applied. Utilizing sophisticated signal processing techniques, the system is able to visualize the blood flow and the blood vessel wall motion. By plugging that data into a mathematical model, the blood pressure at that exact location can be derived.
The technology allows users to observe variations in blood pressure and flow, in time with the beating of the heart, which will provide information on what's going on "downstream" from that location.
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