Ultrasound-driven atherosclerosis nanomedicine: from mechanical, cavitation, and sonodynamic therapies to bedside translation.

ABSTRACT: Atherosclerosis (AS) is a leading cause of cardiovascular mortality worldwide, highlighting an urgent need for innovative, non-invasive therapies to address plaque instability and acute cardiovascular events. Ultrasound technology has emerged as a transformative platform, utilizing mechanical, cavitation, and sonodynamic effects to specifically target the pathological mechanisms of AS. This review systematically explores three key therapeutic strategies: first, ultrasound thermal and mechanical effects for direct plaque disruption and enhanced drug delivery; second, cavitation-mediated thrombolysis and modulation of the plaque microenvironment, and third, sonodynamic effects triggering reactive oxygen species (ROS)-induced apoptosis or autophagy. Furthermore, this review provides a compreh

SUBMITTER: Shao Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12681118 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature