The DOI matches its Crossref record; 70 of the 71 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
A Review of the Current Therapies, Challenges, and Future Directions of Transcranial Focused Ultrasound Technology: Advances in Diagnosis and Treatment
Abstract
Importance: Magnetic resonance imaging-guided focused ultrasound ablation has been approved for the treatment of refractory essential tremor and is being studied for other neurological indications, including dyskinesias and tremor in Parkinson disease, dystonia, neuropathic pain, obsessive-compulsive disorder, epilepsy, and brain tumors. Objective: To review the scientific foundations of FUS technology, existing neurological applications, and future advances. Evidence Review: PubMed was searched for the past 10 years using the terms "transcranial ultrasound," "focused ultrasound," and "neurological applications." Relevant references were selected from the author's reference collection. From the 2855 unique records, 243 publications were screened. After excluding abstracts detailing in vitro studies or non-neurological applications, 86 full texts were retrieved for qualitative review. Findings: Advances in the transducer design and electronic phase correction have allowed efficient focusing of ultrasounds for transcranial treatment. The mid-frequency (650 kHz) transducer can make small (4-6 mm in diameter) and precise (accuracy of <2 mm) brain lesions. The treatment monitoring is achieved via "live" anatomical thermography imaging and clinical feedback. The initial results from its clinical application in movement disorders are encouraging. Emerging applications in epilepsy and neurobehavioral and cognitive disorders are being explored. The low-frequency (220 kHz) transducer coupled with microbubbles can potentially enable targeted drug delivery for novel applications, such as Alzheimer disease and brain tumors. Finally, neuromodulation with subthreshold sonications may allow the interrogation of brain areas previously not accessible for electrical stimulation. Conclusions and Relevance: Transcranial focused ultrasound for both ablative and nonablative applications is noninvasive, making it suitable for selected patients who are not candidates for conventional surgical options. Future advancements in imaging and sonication algorithms will improve the safety and efficacy of this technology.
Overview
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
In the citing paper
“Animal studies have demonstrated safe and reversible BBB opening (4, 6, 7) as well as reduction of amyloid-beta plaque, neurogenesis, and improvement of memory.”
From Noninvasive hippocampal blood-brain barrier opening in Alzheimer's disease with focused ultrasound. (2020) · cites this paper as [4]
In the citing paper
“Animal studies have demonstrated safe and reversible BBB opening (4, 6, 7) as well as reduction of amyloid-beta plaque, neurogenesis, and improvement of memory.”
From Noninvasive hippocampal blood-brain barrier opening in Alzheimer's disease with focused ultrasound. (2020) · cites this paper as [4]
Citations
Cites
Thermal dose determination in cancer therapy
Sapareto, S. A., & Dewey, W. C. (1984) · International Journal of Radiation Oncology*Biology*Physics · doi:10.1016/0360-3016(84)90379-1 · Cited by 2,505
Long-term suppression of tremor by chronic stimulation of the ventral intermediate thalamic nucleus
Benabid, A. L., Pollak, P., Hoffmann, D., Gervason, C., Hommel, M., Perret, J. E., de Rougemont, J., & Gao, D. M. (1991) · The Lancet · doi:10.1016/0140-6736(91)91175-t · Cited by 1,787
The connectomics of brain disorders
Fornito, A., Zalesky, A., & Breakspear, M. (2015) · Nature Reviews Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nrn3901 · Cited by 1,734
A Randomized Trial of Focused Ultrasound Thalamotomy for Essential Tremor
Elias, W. J., Lipsman, N., Ondo, W. G., Ghanouni, P., Kim, Y. G., Lee, W., Schwartz, M., Hynynen, K., Lozano, A. M., Shah, B. B., et al. (2016) · New England Journal of Medicine · doi:10.1056/nejmoa1600159 · Cited by 1,167
Basic principles of thermal dosimetry and thermal thresholds for tissue damage from hyperthermia
Dewhirst, M. W., Viglianti, B. L., Lora‐Michiels, M., Hanson, M., & Hoopes, P. J. (2003) · International Journal of Hyperthermia · doi:10.1080/0265673031000119006 · Cited by 1,014
Transcranial focused ultrasound modulates the activity of primary somatosensory cortex in humans
Legon, W., Sato, T. F., Opitz, A., Mueller, J., Barbour, A. J., Williams, A., & Tyler, W. J. (2014) · Nature Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nn.3620 · Cited by 1,008
Transcranial Pulsed Ultrasound Stimulates Intact Brain Circuits
Tufail, Y., Matyushov, A. D., Baldwin, N. G., Tauchmann, M. L., Georges, J., Yoshihiro, A., Tillery, S. I. H., & Tyler, W. J. (2010) · Neuron · doi:10.1016/j.neuron.2010.05.008 · Cited by 958
A pilot study of focused ultrasound thalamotomy for essential tremor.
Elias, W., Huss, D., Voss, T., Loomba, J., Khaled, M., Zadicario, E., Frysinger, R. C., Sperling, S., Wylie, S., Monteith, S., et al. (2013) · New England Journal of Medicine · doi:10.1056/nejmoa1300962 · Cited by 833
Proton Resonance Shift of Water in the Gas and Liquid States
Hindman, J. C. (1966) · The Journal of Chemical Physics · doi:10.1063/1.1726676 · Cited by 661
MR-guided focused ultrasound thalamotomy for essential tremor: a proof-of-concept study
Lipsman, N., Schwartz, M. L., Huang, Y., Lee, L., Sankar, T., Chapman, M., Hynynen, K., & Lozano, A. M. (2013) · The Lancet Neurology · doi:10.1016/s1474-4422(13)70048-6 · Cited by 604
Flagged first, then by citations
1 of the 71 references couldn’t be matched to a known paper.
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Items 101–200 of 289
Emerging Treatments for Disorders of Consciousness in Paediatric Age
Irzan, H., Pozzi, M., Chikhladze, N., Cebanu, S., Tadevosyan, A. E., Cornelia, C., Tsiskaridze, A., Melbourne, A., Strazzer, S., Marc Modat, A., et al. (2022) · Brain Sciences · doi:10.3390/brainsci12020198 · Cited by 18
“Focused ultrasounds [86] allow the transient and localised opening of the blood–brain barrier in a graded manner for targeted chemotherapy and delivery of neurotrophic factors to the central nervous system (CNS) (Figure 1C).”
BackgroundPotentiation of cortico-spinal output via targeted electrical stimulation of the motor thalamus
Ho, J. C., Grigsby, E. M., Damiani, A., Liang, L., Balaguer, J.-M., Kallakuri, S., Tang, L. W., Barrios‐Martinez, J., Karapetyan, V., Fields, D. P., et al. (2024) · Nature Communications · doi:10.1038/s41467-024-52477-1 · Cited by 19
Cacho‐Asenjo, E., Honorato-Cía, C., Núñez-Córdoba, J. M., Fernández-Martínez, M., Gonzalez‐Quarante, L. H., Avilés-Olmos, I., Gorospe, A., Panadero, A., Rodríguez‐Oroz, M., Guridi, J., et al. (2021) · Movement Disorders Clinical Practice · doi:10.1002/mdc3.13210 · Cited by 16
Elevation of Intra-Cellular Calcium in Nucleus Pulposus Cells with Micro-Pipette-Guided Ultrasound
Chu, Y. C., Lim, J., Lai, C.-H., Tseng, M.-C., Chu, Y., & Wang, J. (2021) · Ultrasound in Medicine & Biology · doi:10.1016/j.ultrasmedbio.2021.03.020 · Cited by 16
Focused Ultrasound for Pediatric Diseases
Janwadkar, R., Leblang, S. D., Ghanouni, P., Brenner, J., Ragheb, J. R., Hennekens, C. H., Kim, A., & Sharma, K. V. (2022) · PEDIATRICS · doi:10.1542/peds.2021-052714 · Cited by 16
Focused ultrasound for functional neurosurgery
Lev-Tov, L., Barbosa, D. A. N., Ghanouni, P., Halpern, C. H., & Buch, V. (2021) · Journal of Neuro-Oncology · doi:10.1007/s11060-021-03818-3 · Cited by 16
Neuromodulation technologies improve functional recovery after brain injury: From bench to bedside
Liu, M., Meng, Y., Ouyang, S., Zhai, M., Yang, L., Yang, Y., & Wang, Y.-H. (2024) · Neural Regeneration Research · doi:10.4103/nrr.nrr-d-24-00652 · Cited by 17
Ahmed, A.-K., Guo, S., Kelm, N. D., Clanton, R., Melhem, E. R., Gullapalli, R. P., Ksendzovsky, A., Eisenberg, H. M., Miller, T. R., & Gandhi, D. (2022) · Frontiers in Neurology · doi:10.3389/fneur.2021.808810 · Cited by 15
Lin, Y., Gan, L., Ren, L., Ma, C., Dai, M., Qian, K., Ye, Q., & Lin, X. (2023) · Neuroreport · doi:10.1097/wnr.0000000000001970 · Cited by 15
“Among them, FUS has attracted much attention due to its good application prospects [27,28].”
BackgroundKumar, S., Yadav, A., Verma, R. K., Kumar, A., Gupta, P. K., & Shukla, R. (2025) · Molecular Pharmaceutics · doi:10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.5c00386 · Cited by 14
Wang, B., Chen, M.-X., Chen, S.-C., Feng, X., Liao, Y.-H., Zhao, Y.-X., Tie, J.-S., Liu, Y., & Ao, L. (2022) · Neural Plasticity · doi:10.1155/2022/6472475 · Cited by 16
The nanocarrier strategy for crossing the blood-brain barrier in glioma therapy
Wu, H., Wang, Y., Ren, Z., Cong, H., Shen, Y., & Yu, B. (2024) · Chinese Chemical Letters · doi:10.1016/j.cclet.2024.109996 · Cited by 14
Toccaceli, G., Delfini, R., Colonnese, C., Raco, A., & Peschillo, S. (2018) · World Neurosurgery · doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2018.05.239 · Cited by 14
Longitudinal analysis of structural changes following unilateral focused ultrasound thalamotomy
Sammartino, F., Yeh, F.-C., & Krishna, V. (2019) · NeuroImage: Clinical · doi:10.1016/j.nicl.2019.101754 · Cited by 14
Self-citationPresent and future of subthalamotomy in the management of Parkinson´s disease: a systematic review
Máñez-Miró, J. U., Rodríguez‐Rojas, R., del Álamo, M., Martínez‐Fernández, R., & Obeso, J. A. (2021) · Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics · doi:10.1080/14737175.2021.1911649 · Cited by 16
Kim, H., Wu, H., Chen, M., Dai, X., Zhou, R., & Jiang, X. (2023) · IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering · doi:10.1109/tbme.2023.3238679 · Cited by 14
“on non-intrusive ultrasound devices operating on the outer surface of the human body [17], [21], [22].”
BackgroundLiu, H., Sigona, M. K., Manuel, T. J., Chen, L. M., Dawant, B. M., & Caskey, C. F. (2023) · Journal of medical imaging · doi:10.1117/1.jmi.10.5.055001 · Cited by 14
Lonser, R. R., Zipfel, G. J., & Chiocca, E. A. (2020) · Journal of neurosurgery · doi:10.3171/2020.4.jns201202 · Cited by 14
Moosa, S., Craver, A., Asuzu, D. T., Eames, M. D. C., Wang, T. R., & Elias, W. (2022) · Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery · doi:10.1159/000525763 · Cited by 12
Altınel, Y., Alkhalfan, F., Qiao, N., & Velimirovic, M. (2018) · World Neurosurgery · doi:10.1016/j.wneu.2018.11.175 · Cited by 13
Ríos, C., Pérez-Neri, I., González-Aguilar, A., Sandoval, H., & Pineda, C. (2022) · Current Neuropharmacology · doi:10.2174/1570159x20666220201092908 · Cited by 12
Advances in Imaging Modalities for Pediatric Brain and Spinal Cord Tumors
Huisman, T. A. G. M., Patel, R., Kralik, S. F., Desai, N. K., Meoded, A., Chen, K. S., Weiner, H. L., Curry, D. J., Lequin, M. H., Kranendonk, M. E. G., et al. (2023) · Pediatric Neurosurgery · doi:10.1159/000531998 · Cited by 12
Drug-Resistant Epilepsy and Gut-Brain Axis: an Overview of a New Strategy for Treatment
Chen, S., Jiao, Y., Han, C. Q., Li, Y., Zou, W., & Liu, J. (2023) · Molecular Neurobiology · doi:10.1007/s12035-023-03757-2 · Cited by 13
Deep brain stimulation and other surgical modalities for the management of essential tremor
Wang, K., Ren, Q.-W., Chiu, S. Y., Patel, B., Meng, F.-G., Hu, W., & Shukla, A. (2020) · Expert Review of Medical Devices · doi:10.1080/17434440.2020.1806709 · Cited by 10
Zhu, S., Meng, B., Jiang, J., Wang, X., Luo, N., Liu, N., Shen, H., Wang, L., & Li, Q. (2022) · Frontiers in Cellular Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fncel.2022.839023 · Cited by 12
Contemporary Approaches Toward Neuromodulation of Fear Extinction and Its Underlying Neural Circuits
Becker, C. R., & Milad, M. R. (2023) · Current topics in behavioral neurosciences · doi:10.1007/7854_2023_442 · Cited by 13
Translational medicine of the glutamate AMPA receptor
Miyazaki, T., Hiroki, A. B. E., Uchida, H., & Takahashi, T. (2021) · Proceedings of the Japan Academy Series B · doi:10.2183/pjab.97.001 · Cited by 12
Exosome-based regenerative rehabilitation: A novel ice breaker for neurological disorders
Wang, Y., Cheng, J., Liu, Y., Wang, Y.-P., Yang, Q., & Zhou, N. (2023) · Biomedicine & Pharmacotherapy · doi:10.1016/j.biopha.2023.115920 · Cited by 11
Ambient chemical and physical approaches for the modulation of sleep and wakefulness
Wang, Y., Ma, W., Kong, L.-X., Zhang, H., Yuan, P., Qu, W., Liu, C., & Huang, Z. (2024) · Sleep Medicine Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.smrv.2024.102015 · Cited by 13
Fernández-García, C., Alonso-Frech, F., Monje, M., & Matías-Guiu, J. (2020) · Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics · doi:10.1080/14737175.2020.1677465 · Cited by 10
“The technique comprises the use of focused acoustic energy (ultrasound) on selected brain areas, leading to their ablation using real-time procedural monitoring [65].”
BackgroundMethodGibson, B. C., Claus, E. D., Sanguinetti, J., Witkiewitz, K. A., & Clark, V. P. (2022) · Neuroscience & Biobehavioral Reviews · doi:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104821 · Cited by 12
An update on pediatric surgical epilepsy: Part II
Gadgil, N., Muir, M. T., LoPresti, M. A., & Lam, S. K. (2019) · Surgical Neurology International · doi:10.25259/sni_418_2019 · Cited by 11
Zibly, Z., Averbuch, S., & Deogaonker, M. (2020) · Neurology India · doi:10.4103/0028-3886.302453 · Cited by 11
A Scientometric Analysis of the 100 Most Cited Articles on Pallidotomy
Agrawal, M., Garg, K., Samala, R., Rajan, R., & Singh, M. (2021) · Stereotactic and Functional Neurosurgery · doi:10.1159/000516237 · Cited by 10
Ultrasound-enhanced gene transfection: vectors, methods, and biomedical applications
Wu, J., Gao, Y., Zhou, H., Yang, Z., Rodriguez, R. D. D., Xu, X., Ma, L., & Qiu, L. (2025) · Ultrasonics Sonochemistry · doi:10.1016/j.ultsonch.2025.107607 · Cited by 11
“…reversible opening of the BBB via MRI-guided low-intensity focused ultrasound (LIFU) has been reported in multiple neurological conditions, such as Alzheimer ’ s disease (AD) [243], Parkinson ’ s disease [244], brain tumors [204,245], and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis [169], among others [246].”
Dose-response relationships in transcranial brain stimulation: Physics, physiology and mechanism
Soleimani, G., Alekseichuk, I., Aurup, C., Bergmann, T. O., Bestmann, S., Beynel, L., Evans, C., Frӧhlich, F., Ghobadi‐Azbari, P., Hanlon, C. A., et al. (2026) · Brain stimulation · doi:10.1016/j.brs.2026.103067 · Cited by 13
“…(TMS) [2], transcranial electrical stimulation (tES) [3], electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) [4], transcranial focused ultrasound stimulation (tFUS) [5], which are the main focus in this paper, and other novel approaches like magnetic seizure therapy [6], and transcranial infrared stimulation [7].”
Wrede, P., Aghakhani, A., Bozuyuk, U., Yıldız, E., & Sitti, M. (2023) · ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces · doi:10.1021/acsami.3c11656 · Cited by 10
X-linked dystonia Parkinsonism: crossing a new threshold
Ng, A. R., Jamora, R. D. G., & Rosales, R. L. (2021) · Journal of Neural Transmission · doi:10.1007/s00702-021-02324-0 · Cited by 10
Giammalva, G. R., MAUGERI, R., UMANA, G. E., PAOLINI, F., BONOSI, L., MECCIO, F., SCALIA, G., PALMISCIANO, P., GERARDI, R. M., & IACOPINO, D. G. (2022) · Journal of Neurosurgical Sciences · doi:10.23736/s0390-5616.22.05524-2 · Cited by 10
Kundu, B., Lucke-Wold, B. P., Foster, C. H., Englot, D. J., Urhie, O., Nwafor, D. C., & Rolston, J. D. (2019) · Neurosurgery · doi:10.1093/neuros/nyz554 · Cited by 10
Epilepsy surgery in children: what the radiologist needs to know
Pearce, K., Dixon, L. V. M., D’Arco, F., Pujar, S. S., Das, K. B., Tahir, Z., Tisdall, M. M., & Mankad, K. (2020) · Neuroradiology · doi:10.1007/s00234-020-02448-2 · Cited by 10
Michimoto, I., Miyashita, K., Suzuyama, H., Yano, K., Kobayashi, Y., Saito, K., & Matsukawa, M. (2021) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-021-96502-5 · Cited by 9
Seo, M., Shin, M., Noh, G., Yoo, S., & Yoon, K. (2024) · Computer Methods and Programs in Biomedicine · doi:10.1016/j.cmpb.2024.108458 · Cited by 10
Ricciardi, G. K., Paio, F., Zivelonghi, C., Longhi, M., Bulgarelli, G., Tagliamonte, M., Polloniato, P. M., Mantovani, E., Ferlisi, M., Nicolato, A., et al. (2024) · Neurological Sciences · doi:10.1007/s10072-024-07946-2 · Cited by 9
“High-intensity MRgFUS induces tissue ablation by heating the target area [2] and is approved for treating refractory essential tremor, Parkinson's disease, and uncontrolled neuropathic pain in various countries, subject to regional regulations.”
Evolution of metasurfaces for advanced elastic wave manipulation: a comprehensive review
Park, C. W., & Kim, Y. Y. (2025) · Smart Materials and Structures · doi:10.1088/1361-665x/add976 · Cited by 9
The Application of Ultrasound‐Induced Blood–Brain Barrier Opening in Neurology and Immunology
Jiang, A., Wang, Z., Song, D., Zhang, X., Guan, M., Li, X., Tan, J., He, Y., Han, W., Ding, X., et al. (2025) · Small · doi:10.1002/smll.202502699 · Cited by 9
Surgical Management of Brain Tumors with Focused Ultrasound
Mehkri, Y., Pierre, K., Woodford, S. J., Davidson, C. G., Urhie, O., Sriram, S., Hernandez, J. S., Hanna, C., & Lucke-Wold, B. P. (2023) · Current Oncology · doi:10.3390/curroncol30050377 · Cited by 9
“A coupling agent, such as gel, between the transducer and biological tissue, ensures the ideal propagation of the ultrasound wave [2].”
BackgroundInfluentialA transducer positioning method for transcranial focused ultrasound treatment of brain tumors
Gao, P., Sun, Y., Zhang, G., Li, C., & Wang, L. (2023) · Frontiers in Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnins.2023.1277906 · Cited by 9
Zhou, M., Fu, X., Ma, B., Chen, Z., Cheng, Y., Liu, L., Kan, S., Zhao, X., Feng, S., Jiang, Z., et al. (2023) · Frontiers in Neurology · doi:10.3389/fneur.2023.1274642 · Cited by 9
MR-Guided Focused Ultrasound for Refractory Epilepsy: Where Are We Now?
Labate, A., Bertino, S., Morabito, R., Smorto, C., Militi, A., Cammaroto, S., Anfuso, C., Tomaiuolo, F., Tonin, P., Marino, S., et al. (2023) · Journal of Clinical Medicine · doi:10.3390/jcm12227070 · Cited by 10
“Among these, histotripsy may represent a new frontier of non-resective treatment, as suggested by Krishna and colleagues [62].”
BackgroundMagnetic Resonance–Guided Focused Ultrasound for Psychiatric Disorders
Davidson, B., Meng, Y., Giacobbe, P., Hamani, C., & Lipsman, N. (2019) · Clinical Pharmacology & Therapeutics · doi:10.1002/cpt.1467 · Cited by 9
Choi, D. W., Kim, T. S., Kim, Y. S., & Kim, D. J. (2020) · BMC Neurology · doi:10.1186/s12883-020-01859-1 · Cited by 10
A conjoint analysis of epilepsy and migraine through network-and-pathway-based method
Shu, Y., Xu, Y., Xiao, W., Deng, X.-L., Zeng, Y., Chen, R., Xiao, B., & Long, H. (2020) · Annals of Palliative Medicine · doi:10.21037/apm-19-690 · Cited by 9
“However, the efficacy and safety are currently under investigation with MRguided ultrasound (60).”
BackgroundWhat Future for Ultrasound in Medicine?
Tovoli, F., Cantisani, V., Schiavone, C., & Piscaglia, F. (2018) · Ultraschall in der Medizin - European Journal of Ultrasound · doi:10.1055/s-0043-125421 · Cited by 9
“It is currently under investigation as a possible treatment for disabling dyskinesia in Parkinson ’ s disease, neuropathic pain, obsessive-compulsive disorder, and epilepsy [4].”
InfluentialMaria, G. D. S. A., Dias, N. S., Nicolato, R., de Paula, J. J., Bicalho, M. A. C., Cunha, R. S., Silva, L. C., de Miranda, D. M., Viana, B. D. M., & Romano‐Silva, M. A. (2024) · Asian Journal of Psychiatry · doi:10.1016/j.ajp.2024.103994 · Cited by 8
Hsieh, T.-H., Chu, P.-C., Nguyen, T. X. D., Kuo, C.-W., Chang, P.-K., Chen, K.-H. S., & Liu, H. (2024) · International Journal of Molecular Sciences · doi:10.3390/ijms25115687 · Cited by 8
“…the exploration of the potential use of tFUS clinical applications in treating neurological and neuropsychiatric disorders. tFUS is an emerging, non-invasive neuromodulation tool for deep brain stimulation that has shown promise in treating various neurological and psychiatric conditions [14–16].”
BackgroundFerreira, C. C., Ferreira, M. Y., Singh, F., Wong, T., Bokil, S., Massimo, S., Cavallaro, J., Albers, O., D’Amico, R. S., Langer, D. J., et al. (2025) · Journal of NeuroInterventional Surgery · doi:10.1136/jnis-2025-023068 · Cited by 8
“36 Various strategies have been developed to overcome this obstacle, including transcranial focused ultrasound, 37 MRI-guided focused ultrasound, 38 low-intensity pulsed ultrasound with concomitant administration of intravenous microbubbles, 39 and chemical agents like mannitol.”
The promise of transcranial focused ultrasound in disorders of consciousness: a narrative review
Yang, D., Fu, S., Zhao, M., & Shi, Y. (2025) · Critical Care · doi:10.1186/s13054-025-05338-2 · Cited by 8
“Expanding research into these areas could broaden the therapeutic impact of this technology while providing valuable insights for its optimization in DOC treatment [13].”
Filieri, S., Miciaccia, M., Armenise, D., Baldelli, O. M., Liturri, A., Ferorelli, S., Sardanelli, A. M., Perrone, M. G., & Scilimati, A. (2025) · Pharmaceuticals · doi:10.3390/ph18040525 · Cited by 8
“…disease (AD) [38] and brain tumors [39]. can penetrate the cerebral cortex to depths of more than 10 cm through an intact skull [35], and this suggests its use in many diseases, such as depression [36], thrombolysis in cerebral ischemia [37], Alzheimer’s disease (AD) [38] and brain tumors [39].”
Focused Ultrasound for Neurodegenerative Diseases
Mehta, R. I., Ranjan, M., Haut, M. W., Carpenter, J., & Rezai, A. R. (2024) · Magnetic Resonance Imaging Clinics of North America · doi:10.1016/j.mric.2024.03.001 · Cited by 8
Self-citationAlster, P., Koziorowski, D., Ząbek, M., Dzierzęcki, S., Ma̧dry, J., Duszyńska-Wąs, K., Grygarowicz, H., Zielonko, J., Królicki, L., & Friedman, A. (2018) · Frontiers in Neurology · doi:10.3389/fneur.2018.00512 · Cited by 8
“MRI-guided focused ultrasound ablation (MRI-FUS), although only approved for the treatment of tremors associated with refractory essential tremor (ET), has been analyzed in the context of several other indications such as tremor in PD, dystonia, epilepsy, brain tumor and neuropathic pain (11, 12).”
BackgroundGagliardo, C., Cannella, R., Filorizzo, G., Toia, P., Salvaggio, G., Collura, G., Pignolo, A., Maugeri, R., Napoli, A., D'Amelio, M., et al. (2021) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-021-82271-8 · Cited by 8
Neuroethical implications of focused ultrasound for neuropsychiatric illness
Asher, R., Hyun, I., Head, M. A., Cosgrove, G. R., & Silbersweig, D. (2023) · Brain stimulation · doi:10.1016/j.brs.2023.04.020 · Cited by 8
“anatomical sites [21], poor efficiency with low skull-density ratios which increases risk of off-target heating [22], lack of standardized treatment parameters [21], on and off-target sonication adverse effects [26], and a nascent evidence base.”
Xu, T., Tan, D., Wang, Y., Gong, C., Yuan, J., Yang, X., Wen, Y., Ban, Y., Liang, M., Hu, Y., et al. (2024) · Theranostics · doi:10.7150/thno.96598 · Cited by 7
“…ultrasound, which can cause thermal ablation of brain tissue, has been shown to have great potential for regulating brain functions and treating central nervous system (CNS) diseases, including epilepsy, essential tremor, Alzheimer’s disease, and Parkinson’s disease, in humans and animals [16-18].”
Chandía, S. K., Schattenfroh, J., Brinker, S. T., Tzschätzsch, H., Sack, I., & Meyer, T. (2024) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-024-79991-y · Cited by 6
Non-Drug and Non-Invasive Therapeutic Options in Alzheimer’s Disease
Şovrea, A. S., Boşca, A. B., Dronca, E., Constantin, A.-M., Crintea, A., Suflețel, R. T., Lupean, R.-A., Ștefan, P.-A., Onofrei, M. M., Tschall, C., et al. (2025) · Biomedicines · doi:10.3390/biomedicines13010084 · Cited by 9
“Minor side effects were reported, such as headache, uncomfortable feeling, pain, and pressure, but 80–90% of patients reported no sensation of pain or pressure during TPS treatment, and more than 60% reported no side effects after TPS [127,160,161].”
InfluentialAdvances in clinical neurorestorative treatments of Parkinson's disease
Yin, Y., Su, D., Lam, J. S. T., & Feng, T. (2025) · Journal of Neurorestoratology · doi:10.1016/j.jnrt.2025.100204 · Cited by 8
Focused ultrasound: focused on tremor
Davidson, B., & Lozano, A. M. (2025) · Expert Review of Medical Devices · doi:10.1080/17434440.2025.2489493 · Cited by 7
“Further, the angle at which ultrasound waves encounter a change in tissue density affects transmission, with waves encountering the skull at more oblique angles (i.e. > 20 degrees) being reflected to a greater degree [7].”
InfluentialAcoustic hologram-enabled simultaneous multi-target blood-brain barrier opening (AH-SiMBO)
Yao, X., Piao, X., Hong, S., Ji, C., Wang, M., Wei, Y., Xu, Z., Pan, J., Pei, Y., & Cheng, B. (2025) · Communications Engineering · doi:10.1038/s44172-025-00428-z · Cited by 7
“This technique can induce either temporary or lasting changes in tissue through thermal 3 or non-thermal mechanisms 4 , enabling a range of therapeutic outcomes 5 .”
Teaching neurological disorders with ultrasound: A novel workshop for medical students
Prats, M. I., Shah, V., Cavalcanti, M., Scheetz, S. D., Bahner, D., & Dornbos, D. (2020) · Brain Circulation · doi:10.4103/bc.bc_30_19 · Cited by 7
Anisotropic Longitudinal Wave Propagation in Swine Skull
Murashima, N., Michimoto, I., Koyama, D., & Matsukawa, M. (2020) · IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics Ferroelectrics and Frequency Control · doi:10.1109/tuffc.2020.3009135 · Cited by 7
“Recent advances in transcranial ultrasonic transmission have provided new noninvasive therapeutic and diagnostic techniques for brain diseases [1], [2].”
BackgroundLiu, J., Fang, C., Zhang, K., Ma, R., Zhou, H., Chen, L., Wang, Q., Lu, Y., Wang, T., & Xiong, L. (2023) · Frontiers in Neuroscience · doi:10.3389/fnins.2023.962001 · Cited by 7
“Using TCD, the blood flow velocities and resistance index can be obtained to monitor the cerebral hemodynamics as well as auto-regulation (Krishna et al., 2018; Lin et al., 2018; Bonow et al., 2019; Natique et al., 2021).”
MethodResearch and progress of focused ultrasound in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease
Ma, X., Li, T., Du, L., & Han, T. (2023) · Frontiers in Neurology · doi:10.3389/fneur.2023.1323386 · Cited by 7
Slominski, E., Marchant, J. K., Judd, W., Alexander, M. D., Rolston, J. D., Odéen, H., Rieke, V., Christensen, D. A., & Parker, D. L. (2023) · Medical Physics · doi:10.1002/mp.16427 · Cited by 6
Ultrasound neuromodulation hypotheses on the directionality of effects and community resource
Caffaratti, H., Slater, B., Shaheen, N., Rhone, A. E., Calmus, R., Kritikos, M. E., Kumar, S., Dlouhy, B. J., Oya, H., Griffiths, T. D., et al. (2026) · eLife · doi:10.1101/2024.06.14.24308829 · Cited by 6
“TUS at higher intensities that cause tissue ablation has FDA-approved application for essential tremor following large, randomized clinical trials (Choi & Kim, 2019; Krishna et al., 2018).”
Developing personalized treatment strategies for Parkinson’s disease based on disease subtypes
Hey, G. E., Eisinger, R. S., Guarín, D. L., Safarpour, D., Rodríguez‐Violante, M., & Ramirez‐Zamora, A. (2025) · Expert Review of Neurotherapeutics · doi:10.1080/14737175.2025.2552784 · Cited by 7
“For patients with contraindications to DBS, lesioning or ablative surgeries have been considered a reasonable approach to treatment [61].”
Focused Ultrasound for Chronic Pain
Bao, J., Tangney, T., & Pilitsis, J. G. (2022) · Neurosurgery Clinics of North America · doi:10.1016/j.nec.2022.02.010 · Cited by 6
Neuromodulation to Enhance Creative Cognition: a Review of New and Emerging Approaches
Cortes, R. A., Holzman, D. D., & Green, A. E. (2023) · Journal of Cognitive Enhancement · doi:10.1007/s41465-023-00264-z · Cited by 6
Ruger, L. N., Langman, M., Farrell, R. F., Rossmeisl, J. H., Prada, F. U., & Vlaisavljevich, E. (2024) · IEEE Transactions on Biomedical Engineering · doi:10.1109/tbme.2024.3399688 · Cited by 6
“…ultrasound (FUS) has emerged as an effective treatment modality for a multitude of applications and is under development as an intervention for various neurologic disorders, including immunomodulation, neuromodulation, blood-brain barrier opening, tumor ablation, and targeted drug delivery [1].”
BackgroundIntraoperative lesion characterization after focused ultrasound thalamotomy.
Sammartino, F., Yeh, F.-C., & Krishna, V. (2021) · Journal of Neurosurgery · doi:10.3171/2021.10.jns211651 · Cited by 10
Self-citationCross-modal Willis metasurfaces for perfect control of elastic wave refraction in solids
Park, C. W., Lee, J., & Kim, Y. Y. (2025) · Physical Review Applied · doi:10.1103/kv7h-zq6x · Cited by 5
Advances in therapeutic hybrid neuromodulation for Parkinson’s disease
Bano, I., Jeevanandam, J., & Tsenov, G. (2026) · 3 Biotech · doi:10.1007/s13205-025-04681-z · Cited by 7
“The basic mechanism involves the use of ultrasound (US) transducer arrays to deliver mechanical energy to a small, targeted brain region (Krishna et al. 2018 ).”
Xu, Y., Chen, D., Ye, Q., Zhang, P., Shi, J., Li, S., Sun, Y., Zhao, Z., Tang, Y., Zhang, P., et al. (2026) · MedComm · doi:10.1002/mco2.70739 · Cited by 6
“Approaches such as transcranial focused ultrasound (FUS) [ 198 ], transcranial focused magnetic stimulation [ 199 ], and transcranial temporal interference electrical stimulation (tTIS) [ 49, 200, 201 ] have demonstrated the ability to target deep brain structures and modulate neural activity…”
Focused Ultrasound for Brain Diseases: A Review of Current Applications and Future Perspectives
Gionso, M., Raspagliesi, L., Yuan, L., Bene, M. D., Corradino, N., Ciocca, R., Porto, E., D’Ammando, A., Durando, G., Meco, F. D., et al. (2023) · IRBM · doi:10.1016/j.irbm.2023.100790 · Cited by 5
Radiological identification of the globus pallidus motor subregion in Parkinson’s disease
Sammartino, F., Marsh, R., Yeh, F.-C., Sondergaard, A., Changizi, B. K., & Krishna, V. (2021) · Journal of neurosurgery · doi:10.3171/2021.7.jns21858 · Cited by 5
Self-citationLee, J., Tang, Y., Roy, A., Esfahani, K. S., Chang, S.-Y., & Kim, E. S. (2025) · Journal of Neural Engineering · doi:10.1088/1741-2552/ade7ae · Cited by 4
“Leveraging these advantages, FUS is used in clinical settings for imaging and tumor ablation [20].”
Qian, Y., Chang, X., Lv, C., Zang, J., Zhao, G., & Zhang, T. (2025) · Nano Research · doi:10.26599/nr.2025.94907916 · Cited by 6
He, Q.-L., Zhou, Y. J., Liu, Y., Li, X., Zhao, S.-K., Xie, Q., Feng, G., & Wang, J. (2025) · Bioengineering · doi:10.3390/bioengineering13010020 · Cited by 4
“Notably, variations in individual parameters or their combinations can lead to distinct neuromodulatory outcomes [16,17].”
Reet, J. V., Tunnell, K., Anderson, K., Kim, H., Kim, E., Kowsari, K., & Yoo, S. (2023) · ULTRASONOGRAPHY · doi:10.14366/usg.23037 · Cited by 3
Magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound in dystonia: a scoping review
Guinal, S. M., Jamora, R. D. G., Khu, K. J. O., & Aguilar, J. A. (2024) · Neurological Sciences · doi:10.1007/s10072-024-07882-1 · Cited by 4
Li, Y., Liu, Z., Zhang, J., Zeng, P., Fan, Y., Feng, L., Liu, P., Lyu, G., & Wu, X. (2025) · Biomedical Signal Processing and Control · doi:10.1016/j.bspc.2025.107586 · Cited by 4
Davidson, B., Schmidt, F. A., Bichsel, O., Hajiabadi, M. M., & Lozano, A. M. (2025) · IEEE Reviews in Biomedical Engineering · doi:10.1109/rbme.2025.3624970 · Cited by 6
Peko, L., Katz, S., Gattegno, R., & Ilovitsh, T. (2023) · STAR Protocols · doi:10.1016/j.xpro.2023.102770 · Cited by 4
The Use of Focused Ultrasound Ablation for Movement Disorders
Silva, N. A., Green, M., Roque, D., & Krishna, V. (2024) · Magnetic Resonance Imaging Clinics of North America · doi:10.1016/j.mric.2024.04.003 · Cited by 4
Self-citationKhaboushan, A. S., Zafari, R., Sabahi, M., Khorasanizadeh, M., Ohadi, M. A. D., Flouty, O. E., Ranjan, M., & Slavin, K. V. (2024) · Neurosurgical Review · doi:10.1007/s10143-024-03078-5 · Cited by 4
“HIFU can precisely destroy the epileptogenic zones and diminish the connections of epileptogenic networks by ablating these regions [102, 103].”
Field switching of microfabricated metamagnetic FeRh MRI contrast agents
Dodd, S. J., Gudino, N., Задорожний, О., Staňo, M., Hajduček, J., Arregi, J. A., Morris, H. D., Uhlíř, V., Barbic, M., & Koretsky, A. P. (2025) · Scientific Reports · doi:10.1038/s41598-025-85384-6 · Cited by 4
Bai, Z., Li, Z., & Shao, Y. (2025) · Advanced Science · doi:10.1002/advs.202410760 · Cited by 4
Brain MRI-guided focused ultrasound conceptualised as a tool for brain network intervention.
Permezel, F. E. (2021) · Journal of clinical neuroscience · doi:10.1016/j.jocn.2021.05.062 · Cited by 4
Alternatives to Pharmacological and Psychotherapeutic Treatments in Psychiatric Disorders
Vetrano, I. G., Bonomo, G., & Messina, G. (2021) · Psychiatry International · doi:10.3390/psychiatryint2010001 · Cited by 4
“MRgFUS has already been used for essential tremor, Parkinson’s disease, OCD, and untractable dyskinesias in ONMed states of Parkinson’s disease [23].”
MethodWang, M., Qu, Y., Hu, D., Niu, T., & Qian, Z. (2021) · Journal of Biomedical Nanotechnology · doi:10.1166/jbn.2021.3133 · Cited by 4
Metadata
- Authors
- Krishna, V., Sammartino, F., & Rezai, A.
- Affiliations
- The Ohio State University (US)
- Venue
- JAMA Neurology
- Publisher
- American Medical Association (AMA)
- Published
- 2018-02-01
- Volume
- 75
- Issue
- 2
- Pages
- 246
- ISSN
- 2168-6149 (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W2771503729
- Cited by
- 289
- References
- 71
- Citations by year
- 2026: 32 · 2025: 40 · 2024: 45 · 2023: 47 · 2022: 31 · 2021: 28 · 2020: 32 · 2019: 20 · 2018: 14
- FWCI
- 8.13
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Locations
- JAMA Neurology (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Ultrasound and Hyperthermia Applications
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Clinical Neurology › Deep Brain Stimulation and Movement Disorders
- Physical Sciences › Engineering › Biomedical Engineering › Photoacoustic and Ultrasonic Imaging
- Keywords
- transcranial focused ultrasound, essential tremor, movement disorders, Parkinson's disease, dystonia, neuropathic pain, epilepsy, neuromodulation, microbubbles, targeted drug delivery, Alzheimer's disease, brain tumors, transducer design, phase correction, infrared thermography
- MeSH terms
- Brain Diseases, Humans, Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Therapy, Computer-Assisted, Ultrasonography, Doppler, Transcranial
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review