Super-Resolution Ultrasound to Assess Kidney Vascular Changes in Humans With Kidney Disease
Vascular dysfunction contributes to kidney disease progression, but high-spatial-resolution imaging of the kidney vasculature remains challenging. Computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging use contrast agents that are avoided in chronic kidney disease (CKD). Ultrasound (US) is safe, affordable, and accessible, but conventional methods like contrast-enhanced (US)1 and Doppler2 lack sufficient spatial resolution to delineate small vessels.3 Recently developed super-resolution ultrasound (SRUS) imaging uses microbubbles, a high-frame-rate scanner, and state-of-the-art processing techniques that outperform conventional US.