Here we report the efficacy of a nanoparticle-assisted high-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) treatment that selectively destroys blood clots while minimizing generation of microparticles, or microemboli, that can cause further complications postsurgery. Treatment of malignant blood clots (thrombi) and the resulting emboli are critical problems for numerous patients, and treatments addressing these conditions would benefit from advancements in noninvasive procedures such as HIFU. While recanalization of occlusive blood clots is currently addressed with surgical intervention that seeks to minimize formation of large emboli, there is a danger of microemboli (micrometer-size particles) that have been theorized to be responsible for the poor correlation between apparent surgical success and patient outcome. Here, the addition of phospholipid-coated hydrophobically modified silica nanoparticles (P@hMSNs) improved the efficacy of HIFU treatment by serving as cavitation nuclei for mechanical disruption of thrombi. This treatment was evaluated for the ability to clear the HIFU focal area of a thick and dense thrombus within 10 min. Moreover, it was found that the use of P@hMSN+HIFU treatment generated a significantly smaller microembolic load as compared to comparison techniques, including a HIFU + microbubble contrast agent, HIFU alone, and direct mechanical disruption. This reduction in the microembolic load can occur either with primary removal of the clot by P@hMSN+HIFU or by insonation of the clot fragments after mechanical thrombectomy. Lastly, this method was evaluated in a flow model, where nonocclusive model thrombi and model emboli were mechanically ablated within the focal area within 15 s. Together, these results represent a combination therapy capable of resolving thrombi and microembolisms resulting from thrombectomy through localized destruction of clotted material.
Keywords: atherosclerosis; cavitation; nanoparticle; thrombosis; ultrasound.