Analysis of clot formation with acoustic radiation force

Inappropriate blood coagulation plays an important role in diseases including stroke, heart attack, and deep vein thrombosis (DVT). DVT arises when a blood clot forms in a large vein of the leg. DVT is detrimental because the blood flow may be partially or completely obstructed. More importantly, a potentially fatal situation may arise if part of the clot travels to the arteries in the lungs, forming a pulmonary embolism (PE). Characterization of the mechanical properties of DVT could improve diagnosis and suggest appropriate treatment. We are developing a technique to assess mechanical properties of forming thrombi. The technique uses acoustic radiation force as a means to produce small, localized displacements within the sample. Returned ultrasound echoes are processed to estimate the time dependent displacement of the sample. Appropriate mechanical modeling and signal processing produce plots depicting relative mechanical properties (relative elasticity and relative viscosity) and force-free parameters (time constant, damping ratio, and natural frequency). We present time displacement curves of blood samples obtained during coagulation, and show associated relative and force-free parameter plots. These results show that the Voigt model with added mass accurately characterizes blood behavior during clot formation.