Neurovascular applications of ultrasound contrast enhancing agents

Ultrasound techniques play an important role in the diagnosis of cerebrovas cular disorders. However, in spite of their effectiveness, neurosonological methods have certain limitations, such as detection of low flow signals an d transcranial Doppler signal attenuation of the temporal skull. One approa ch to overcome these limitations is the use of ultrasound contrast enhancin g agents that are based on stabilized gaseous microbubbles. Echo-contrast e nhanced colour-coded duplex sonography significantly improves the signal-to -noise ratio thereby increasing the diagnostic yield and safety in the asse ssment of carotid artery stenoses, of the vertebrobasilar system and of int racranial vessels. Ultrasound contrast enhancement enables the application of neurosonological imaging methods in an enlarged spectrum of neurovascula r disorders and is the basis of new ultrasound imaging techniques.