2021 Volume 48 Issue 5 Pages 227-239
The biological effects of ultrasound exposure can be categorized into thermal and non-thermal effects. Non-thermal effects include primary effects that are directly induced by ultrasound pressure and secondary effects that are generated by ultrasonically induced cavitation phenomena. This tutorial has been written to provide a better understanding of the secondary effects of ultrasound exposure. The dynamics of cavitation bubbles under ultrasound exposure are described to show the mechanisms by which the dynamics of bubbles cause biological effects. The mechanisms are also discussed by comparing ultrasound and X-ray imaging and showing key features of cavitation phenomena in induction of biological effects. Ultrasound therapies that mainly utilize cavitation mechanisms are introduced to show the importance of ultrasound therapies in current and future medicine.
