Assessing the safety and effectiveness of new and emerging therapeutic ultrasound technologies

Thursday, Nov. 9, 2017
12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m.

Presented by

Greg Clement, PhD
Research Physicist
FDA’s Center for Devices and Radiological Health
Ultrasonics Laboratory

Webcast Lecture

Assessing the safety and effectiveness of new and emerging therapeutic ultrasound technologies

About the Presentation

Ultrasound’s long history as a medical tool dates back to the 1940s.  Today, diagnostic ultrasound’s ability to image in real-time, along with its excellent safety record and modern-day portability, has led to its prominence worldwide. 

FDA physicist Greg Clement, PhD, presents research into therapeutic ultrasound’s bioeffects, many of which remain poorly understood.  In recent years there has been a marked increase in the use of high-intensity ultrasound as a minimally invasive therapeutic tool.  Marketed devices now permit the treatment of certain cancers, uterine fibroids, and essential tremor, while investigations into treating many other brain disorders and various cancers are ongoing.

FDA's  Ultrasonics Lab, in its Center for Devices and Radiological Health is working to identify more accurate metrics for quantifying ultrasound safety and straightforward procedures to assess these metrics.

About the Presenter

Physicist Greg Clement, PhD, joined FDA’s Ultrasonics Laboratory in January 2017, with more than 25 years’ experience in developing new methods for ultrasound imaging and therapy--most notably for transcranial brain applications.  He came to FDA from Cleveland Clinic, where he was principal investigator and Director of the Clinic Ultrasound Laboratory.  Previously, he was Associate Professor of Radiology at Harvard Medical School, Head of Imaging for the National Center for Image Guided Therapy, and Technical Director of the Focused Ultrasound Laboratory at Brigham and Women's Hospital.

A Fellow of the Institute of Physics, Dr. Clement is an Associate Editor of IEEE Transactions on Ultrasonics Ferroelectrics and Frequency Control, and sits on the editorial boards of the journals Physics in Medicine and Biology and Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology.