Effect of boundary constraints on the vaporization threshold of low boiling-point phase-change contrast agents

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Phase-change contrast agents (PCCAs) provide advantages over conventional microbubble contrast agents, including increased circulation time and the ability to extravasate from leaky tumor vasculature. Additionally, PCCAs can be vaporized into echogenic microbubbles for diagnostic ultrasound imaging. Previous studies have demonstrated that the vaporization threshold of PCCAs is higher in vivo than in vitro. In this work, the role of boundary constraints imposed by blood vessels on the vaporization threshold of PCCAs is explored. We hypothesize that boundaries raise the vaporization threshold of PCCAs.