Markers for a medical ultrasound imaging catheter

摘要

A catheter is provided for medical ultrasound imaging that can be effectively used in combination with other imaging modalities to detect medical structures of interest as well as the catheter. Markers are added to the catheter with precision, which provides a means to merge the images from different modalities. Using a template, apertures for marker placement are formed in the catheter after creating the catheter housing. The ultrasound array may be used for accurate positioning of the template. Alternatively or additionally, a rigid insert with markers connects with the array. The insert holds the markers in place and may reduce artifacts in ultrasound scanning due to flexing of the array.

主权项

1. A method for manufacturing a medical ultrasound imaging catheter, the method comprising:
positioning a formed catheter housing relative to a template, the catheter housing housing an array of ultrasound elements, and the template including at least one first aperture, the positioning being of the first aperture to be near but not on the array; forming a marker aperture in the catheter housing using the first aperture of the template; inserting a marker in the marker aperture of the formed catheter housing; and sealing the marker aperture of the catheter housing around the marker with additional material or material from the formed catheter housing existing prior to the inserting, wherein the sealing is performed after the inserting into the formed catheter housing; wherein positioning comprises aligning the array relative to the template, and wherein aligning comprises sensing with the array a position of the array relative to the template.