Fig. 5.

In-vivo USPA imaging for ablation catheter tip tracking during EVLA procedure: (a-b) Transverse and (c) sagittal superimposed USPA images of the ablation catheter tip within the jugular vein. The vein is loosely compressed in (a, c, d, e) and tightly compressed in (b). The anatomical structures of the background tissue are visualized using US imaging. (d) Transverse US image of ablation catheter placed inside the jugular vein. Due to similar US features, US imaging is unable to distinguish between the ablation catheter tip and the vein wall. Transverse USPA image of ablation catheter placed inside the jugular vein. PA detects the ablation catheter tip and US imaging visualizes the background tissue.