HCB News: So how big a needle would they put into this IV?
AN: Well, it could be, for example, the difference of a 24 gauge needle versus a 22. The 22 is larger, meaning they can get more fluid into the vessel. That's a big, big deal. So you're actually trying to put a needle into a vessel that's almost the same size, the needle is literally almost the same size as the vessel. You can imagine that if you don't have any resolution, you have no idea what you're doing and you are basically blind. If you can’t get the IV in, it’s game over at some point and sometimes with devastating clinical consequences. With ultra high frequency ultrasound it becomes very clear, speeds the procedure along and prevents adverse complications.

HCB News: How is this useful on the diagnostic side?

AN: With diagnostics we've had quite a bit of interest with the Vevo MD across different specialties including musculoskeletal. This can tie into imaging nerves which can be very, very tiny. If there's nerve injury, one can often see it to a certain extent on a standard frequency ultrasound, but with ultra high frequency individual fibers or fascicles are visible within that nerve which can help understand more about the place and extent of the damage.

HCB News: So you can determine the damage, can you also assess healing?
AN: Yes, being able to count those fascicles- assessing for instance that the patient has 25 fascicles in this bundle, you can determine the injury. With the Vevo MD we can actually see if half of them are actually damaged, or crushed, or inflamed providing a baseline. This can then be followed as treatment progresses. Another important area where this can be applied is looking at very, very tiny tendons, such as in cases of trigger finger lock ups. With this condition, there are tiny pulleys that run along the finger and when these become inflamed such problems ensue. We can visualize them down to the 120 micron size which is necessary to assess these structures. Others in the hands and feet can be looked at clearly by the Vevo MD as well.

HCB News: It would seem to follow that there would be dermatological applications, is that correct?
AN: Right. Dermatologists that we've spoken to report that with their current dermatoscopes, they're just looking at the surface of skin. There's actually a lot going on underneath. During surgical planning to remove a tumor, for instance, being able to visualize surrounding nerves, blood vessels and other structures is quite important. Surgeons using ultra high frequency ultrasound are now able to get a map of structures, margins, and actual depth in great detail. In the case of malignancies, the Vevo MD enables clinicians to see quite far into the tissue behind the pathological area. Being able to see a few millimeters more and with great clarity into the smallest structures can make a big difference.

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