Description:

Interaction of the EM field with biological tissues and its use in diagnostics and therapy. Numerical methods suitable for modeling these interactions. Basics of microwave imaging (MWI). Perspective application of microwave techniques in medical diagnostics: non-invasive monitoring of blood glucose concentration, microwave detection and classification of cerebral vascular events and early detection of breast cancer. Therapeutic systems and applicators for microwave and RF local and regional hyperthermia. Planning treatment. Design and testing of applicators.

Contents:

1. Dielectric properties of biological tissues from 0 to 10 GHz, physical nature, polarization types, physical mathematical models, database of dielectric properties of biological tissues. Measurement of dielectric properties of biological tissues by coaxial reflection probe, ex vivo / in vivo.
2. Anatomically faithful models of the human body, segmentation of MRI and CT images, phantoms. Electrical Properties Tomography (MREPT). Relationship between wavelength and resolution, propagation of EM waves through a loss environment - biological tissue. Numerical methods of calculating EM field interaction with the human body.
3. Non-invasive microwave blood glucose measurement, current status and challenges. MWI, problem definition, direct and inverse role, advantages, limits and obstacles.
4. Linearised methods in real-time MWI. Non-invasive temperature measurement during MWI thermotherapy, microwave systems for detection and identification of cerebral vascular events.
5. Microwave systems for early detection of breast cancer, microwave radiometer in medicine.
6. RF and MW Hyperthermia, phlogies of biological tissues, types of applicators, methods of testing applicators
7. Equation of heat propagation in biological tissues and its use in thermotherapy modeling

Seminar contents:

1. Introduction to the content of exercises, visit to the laboratory and selection of topics for semestral work.
2. Measurement of dielectric properties of fluids and of samples of biological tissues.
3. Segmentation of MRI images.
4. Treatment planning in microwave hyperthermia.
5. Differential microwave imaging in real time: implementation of the Born algorithm.
6. Testing of applicators and systems for MW hyperthermia.
7. Measurement of vital signals using microwave radar.

Recommended literature:

Compulsory literature:
[1] J. Vrba, Perspective medical diagnostic methods based on microwave measurement of dielectric properties of biological tissues, habilitation thesis, 2016.
[2] Matteo Pastorino, Microwave Imaging, ed. 1st, John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 2010, ISBN 978-0-470-27800-0

Abbreviations used:

Semester:

• W ... winter semester (usually October - February)
• S ... spring semester (usually March - June)
• W,S ... both semesters

Mode of completion of the course:

• A ... Assessment (no grade is given to this course but credits are awarded. You will receive only P (Passed) of F (Failed) and number of credits)
• GA ... Graded Assessment (a grade is awarded for this course)
• EX ... Examination (a grade is awarded for this course)
• A, EX ... Examination (the award of Assessment is a precondition for taking the Examination in the given subject, a grade is awarded for this course)

Weekly load (hours per week):

• P ... lecture
• C ... seminar
• L ... laboratory
• R ... proseminar
• S ... seminar