Russia's first contrast will replace CT with ultrasound

Skoltech specialists are working on the creation of the first domestic contrast agent for ultrasound diagnostics. During the experiment, they obtained a clear image of an animal's beating heart. Thanks to the use of substances new for such reagents, the experts managed to increase the contrast of ultrasound examination and significantly extend the time of action of the contrast.

The placental system: a realistic model can help treat abnormalities in pregnant women

How Russian technology will change the process of creating new drugs

"The task of developing the contrast was set by the medics themselves, as this drug has not been produced in Russia, and the existing contrasts in the world are not supplied to our country. The drug is relevant and necessary for diagnostics of a wide range of diseases. When developing the prototype, we took protein and polymer as a basis, obtained a complex of these components and a material - microbubbles based on them, thus combining the advantages of both substances. As a result, we achieved brighter and more uniform contrasting and increased the stability of microbubbles," said Polina Rudakovskaya, a researcher at the Skolkovo Institute of Science and Technology.

Ultrasound diagnostics is a relatively cheap and safe for the body type of research. Apparatuses for its conduct are installed in almost every hospital. Theoretically, ultrasound in some cases can replace magnetic resonance or computed tomography, which gives up to 600 times stronger load on the patient's body than the usual X-ray. However, this requires a high quality contrast agent, an important step towards the creation of which made Russian researchers.

Read more in an exclusive Izvestia article:

Infusion agent: innovative contrast will replace CT with ultrasound