Moving Forward to Real-time Imaging-based Monitoring of Cerebrovascular Diseases Using a Microwave Device: Numerical and Experimental Validation

Abstract

This paper introduces a numerical and experimental assessment of the microwave device capabilities to perform continuous real-time imaging-based monitoring of a brain stroke, exploiting a differential measuring scheme of the scattering matrices and the distorted Born approximation. The device works around 1 GHz and consists of a low-complexity 22-antenna-array composed of custom-made wearable elements. The imaging kernel is built using an average-head reference scenario computed off-line via accurate numerical models and an in-house finite element method electromagnetic solver. The validation follows the progression of emulated evolving hemorrhagic stroke condition, including tests with both an average single-tissue head model and a multi-tissue one in the numerical part and the average scenario in the experimental one. The results show the system’s capacity to localize and track the shape changes of the stroke-affected area in all studied cases.