Acoustic cavitation for producing foam in sclerosant drugs

Sclerotherapy is a method used in the treatment of varicose veins which works by occluding the damaged blood vessel by means of a drug solution. Foam sclerotherapy is an attractive alternative treatment since the results are more effective than when liquid sclerosants are used, as well as less invasive and less expensive than surgery. However, the existence of various protocols for making the foam is the main limit to its use in the clinical environment. The aim of the present article is to define a standard and automated technique in the production of sterile foam through the use of acoustic cavitation induced by ultrasound. Our experimental result demonstrates the possibility of producing a foam free of contaminant agents from a pure liquid drug by applying an acoustic field generated by a PZT-4 transducer.