How does a cavitron work

A Project ReportOnCavitron Ultrasonic Surgical Aspirator(CUSA)Submitted by:Ramandeep Singh
INTRODUCTIONThe CavitronUltrasonic Surgical Aspirator (CUSA) is a dissecting device that uses ultrasonic frequencies to fragment tissue.This highly-specialized instrument is available at only a handful of veterinary universities and human hospitals that focus on neurosurgery. Utilizing a hollow titanium tip that vibrates along its longitudinal axis, fragmentation of susceptible tissue occurs while concurrently lavaging and aspirating material from the surgical site.The CUSA selectively ablates tissues with high water content such as liver parenchyma, glandular, and neoplastic tissue.This instrument is most useful when removing purportedly “non-resectable” brain and spine tumors. With a gentle wand-like motion, the CUSA enables a “layer by layer” surgical excision without affecting vital structures. HISTORYDaniel Bernoulli, an eighteenth-century Swiss scientist known for his work in heterodynamics, stated thatwhen the velocity of fluid increases, its pressure decreases. According to Bernoulli’s law, when a high speed water jet streamis generated, the pressure within the stream drops so low that the water vaporizes. This process is called “cavitation”. In 1916, the physicist Lord Rayleigh discovered the effect of cavitation while investigating damage to a ship’spropeller. He concluded that the collapse of the bubbles created a small jet stream of water, which was responsible for the structural damage. Using a similar principle, high speed mechanical waves can be used in non-elastic media, such as water, to create a cavitation effect. If this phenomenon is appliedto water-rich tissues, such as liver, the finaleffect is the