Super-resolution ultrasound of the neonatal brain - SERENE Brain Study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Super-Resolution Ultrasound Imaging of the Neonatal Brain - The SERENE Brain Study
IRAS ID
339622
Contact name
Jayanta Banerjee
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Imperial College London and Imperial College Healthcare NHS Trust
Duration of Study in the UK
1 years, 0 months, 0 days
Research summary
In today's world, with increased awareness of radiation and the delicate nature of newborn brains, high-quality ultrasound is crucial. Although ultrasound technology has significantly improved, it isn't as widely used as other imaging methods. MRI is the preferred method for imaging infant brains, but it's costly, often requires sedation, and can be challenging for very sick babies. Cranial ultrasound, on the other hand, is cheaper, doesn't need sedation or radiation, and is portable. Recent studies have shown that advances in ultrasound is accurate compared to MRI or CT scans and useful for initial treatment decisions.
Brain injuries in babies are caused by changes in blood flow. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) is well established in children and babies and provides information about this blood flow. The contrast agent being used is safe and quickly cleared from the body, enabling real-time bed-side imaging and allowing repeated tests during a single exam, unlike other contrast agents used in CT or MRI. Super-resolution ultrasound (SRUS) uses these contrast enhanced ultrasound images and through computer manipulation allows for remarkably detailed images of small blood vessels deep within the body. SRUS has shown promising results in both animal and human studies, providing useful information for various medical conditions. Application of SRUS in the neonatal population is still yet to be investigated.
We will recruit a 30 babies. After informed consent is gained from parents each baby will have a standard ultrasound and CEUS. These images which will then undergo post-processing to generate Super resolution ultrasound images. The main aim is to assess the feasibility of SRUS in the neonatal clinical setting. Study will run for 1 year in a neonatal unit with many years of experience in conducting research.
REC name
West Midlands - Black Country Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
24/WM/0204
Date of REC Opinion
30 Oct 2024
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion