Ultrasound may prove to be effective, noninvasive treatment for COVID-19
An ultrasound system on a small, wearable platform next to a face mask
Minneapolis-based start-up company SecondWave has created a high-performance phased-array ultrasound system on a small, wearable platform for the cost of a smartphone. Credit: SecondWave Systems

Update 7/24/20: The study team has released a pre-print paper with data showing that ultrasound reduces many of the same cytokines known to be elevated, and contributing to, the cytokine storm associated with COVID-19. 

May 29, 2020—Professor Hubert Lim and other University researchers are part of a Minneapolis-based start-up company, called SecondWave Systems, that seeks to build a low-cost, wearable ultrasound device that is placed over the ribs area to noninvasively apply energy to the spleen to drive anti-inflammatory effects for various health conditions, such as rheumatoid arthritis and sepsis. 

Recently, they shifted their attention to research that could be beneficial for the hyperinflammation in the lungs that patients experience in COVID-19.

Prof. Lim and his colleagues are working with industry and medical collaborators around the world to conduct pilot studies to collect data on the use of ultrasound stimulation to treat COVID-19. They hope to collect enough data to submit for regulatory approval to use a low cost, portable device in full-scale human clinical trials.

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