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  • Essay / The impact of ultrasound waves on liver damage

    We demonstrate for the first time that exposure to ultrasound at a therapeutic frequency in continuous or pulsed mode is capable of reducing liver damage in the context of hepatectomy partial with vascular exclusion. Importantly, this study revealed that therapy based on 0.8 MHz pulsed ultrasound results in two effects: a) protection against I/R injury associated with a decrease in hepatic IL-1β, and b) improved liver regeneration after 6 hours of reperfusion. These postsurgical results were obtained by applying non-invasive pulsed wave ultrasound for short periods to the right upper abdomen of the rat, before and after surgery. For over 40 years, ultrasound has been used as a healing therapy. Additionally, ultrasound enhances various growth factors associated with angiogenesis and has been shown to decrease the inflammatory response following surgery. By applying ultrasound into tissue, the pressure wave generates heat, cavitation, or mechanical forces that are ultimately responsible for the well-known biological effects of ultrasound. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on “Why violent video games should not be banned”? Get an original essay As a result of the propagation of ultrasound waves through tissues, endothelial cells and blood absorb part of the incident field, producing thus localized effects. Our results indicate preservation of tissue structure and reduction of tissue inflammation following liver I/R injury, which is consistent with other studies demonstrating that ultrasound regimen also protects different tissues against I injury. /R. Ultrasound waves have previously been shown to induce the generation of growth factors (FGF and VEGF) and modulate several cytokines playing a major role in inflammation (TNFα, IL-6, IL-8, IL-1β, IL- 2). The present study showed that pulsed ultrasound increased HGF, which might be related to liver regeneration. To our knowledge, no effects of ultrasound on HGF have been previously described. Furthermore, the reduction in liver damage achieved by ultrasound therapy (in continuous or pulsed mode) has been shown to be associated with a reduction in hepatic IL-1β levels. In addition to the anti-inflammatory effects of ultrasound, it has also been described that damage caused by oxidative stress throughout postischemic reperfusion can be attenuated by intermittent pulses of ultrasound. Along the same lines, when applying ultrasound waves after I/R in hamsters, reduced lipid peroxide formation was recorded in peripheral blood. Under the conditions evaluated here, neither continuous nor pulsed ultrasound was able to reduce oxidative stress. It should be noted that in our conditions we evaluated markers of oxidative stress in rat liver tissues, indicating differences in the effects of ultrasound waves depending on tissues and animal species. The results of the present study indicate different effects of ultrasound depending on the mode of application and the frequencies used. Previous studies suggest that there are differences between animal species in tissue responses to continuous and pulsed ultrasound. Continuous ultrasound causes an increase in tissue temperature, which can result in decreased pain, increased blood flow, and reduction in subacute and chronic inflammation, among other effects. Pulsed ultrasound has minimal thermal effects and is found to have a whole series.