# Ultrasound contrast agents (microbubbles)

Source: https://onco.cc/technologies/ultrasound-contrast-agents/  
OnCo record `ultrasound-contrast-agents` (Technology). Data CC BY-NC 4.0, attribute "Data from OnCo (onco.cc)"; commercial use needs a licence.

## TL;DR

Tiny gas bubbles injected into a vein during an ultrasound scan, used to show blood flow in the heart and, in the liver, to tell different kinds of lump apart without radiation.

## Summary

The WHO groups ultrasound contrast media under ATC V08DA: perflutren in human albumin (Optison), perflutren in phospholipid (Definity, Luminity in Europe), sulfur hexafluoride in phospholipid (Lumason, SonoVue in Europe) and perflubutane. Lumason's American label includes characterising focal liver lesions, and SonoVue's European indication includes liver and breast lesions on Doppler sonography. Perflutren products carry an American boxed warning on serious cardiopulmonary reactions. The elastography and contrast-enhanced ultrasound record covers the imaging technique.

## Fields

- Kind: Technology
- Status: standard-of-care
- Last checked: 2026-11-04
- Also known as: Microbubble contrast; Ultrasound contrast; CEUS agent; Microbubbles
- Tags: contrast-agents-gaps-2026-11
- Principle: Gas microbubbles a few micrometres across stay in the blood vessels and resonate in the ultrasound field, producing strong echoes that show perfusion in real time; contrast-specific imaging modes suppress the tissue signal.
- Since: 1997
- Strengths: Real-time perfusion imaging without radiation; Bedside imaging with the same ultrasound machine
- Limitations: Boxed warning on cardiopulmonary reactions for perflutren products; Limited by the reach of ultrasound

## Sources

- WHO ATC index V08DA: ultrasound contrast media: https://atcddd.fhi.no/atc_ddd_index/?code=V08DA&showdescription=no

## Connected records

- cancers: [Hepatocellular carcinoma](https://onco.cc/cancers/hcc/)
- fronts: [Imaging](https://onco.cc/fronts/imaging/)
- technologies: [Elastography and contrast-enhanced ultrasound](https://onco.cc/technologies/ultrasound-elastography-ceus/), [Gadolinium-based and other MRI contrast agents](https://onco.cc/technologies/gadolinium-based-contrast-agents/), [Ultrasound](https://onco.cc/technologies/ultrasound/)
- drugs: [Perflutren lipid microspheres (ultrasound contrast)](https://onco.cc/drugs/perflutren-lipid-microspheres/), [Perflutren protein-type A microspheres (ultrasound contrast)](https://onco.cc/drugs/optison/), [Sulfur hexafluoride microbubbles (ultrasound contrast)](https://onco.cc/drugs/sulfur-hexafluoride-microspheres/)
- companies: [Bracco (Bracco Imaging and Bracco Diagnostics)](https://onco.cc/companies/bracco/), [GE HealthCare](https://onco.cc/companies/ge-healthcare/), [Lantheus](https://onco.cc/companies/lantheus/)

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