Abstract
Agitated
saline microbubbles (MBs) is a common contrast agent for
determining right-to-left shunt
(RLS) by the contrast Transcranial Doppler (c-TCD). The size of the
generated bubbles is not standardized in clinical practice. The
microbubbles were generated using the recommended manual method by
reciprocating motion through two syringes. The bubble size distributions
(BSD) were measured using the microscopic shadow imaging technique. The
results show that the diameter of MBs is mainly distributed between
10-100 µm, the mean bubble size is between 21-34 μm,
the Sauter mean diameter
(D32) is mainly between 50-300 μm, and
the standard deviation (SD) is
between 6-17 μm in 60 experiments. It provides a more accurate basis for
the recommended manual method
instability. The high variance
values of the BSD indicate that the
manual method has low stability
and repeatability. The results of
this study can be useful for further improvement of the reliability of
c-TCD in detecting RLS.