Patent ID: 6548047
Filing Date: 2003-04-15
Classification: A61K

Abstract:
A method of providing an image of a region of a patient comprising:heating a composition comprising lipid vesicles encapsulating a gaseous precursor to a temperature at or above the boiling point of the gaseous precursor prior to administering the composition to the patient, wherein the gaseous precursor is a fluorinated compound, and wherein said lipid vesicles comprise at least one phosphatidylcholine, at least one phosphatidylethanolamine, and at least one phosphatidic acid, wherein said phosphatidylcholine is selected from the group consisting of dioleoylphosphatidylcholine, dimyristoylphosphatidylcholine, dipalmitoylphosphatidylcholine, and distearoyl-phosphatidylcholine; said phosphatidylethanolamine is selected from the group consisting of dipalmitoylphosphatidylethanolamine, dioleoyl-phosphatidylethanolamine, and N-succinyl-dioleoyl-phosphatidylethanolamine; and said phosphatidic acid is dipalmatoylphosphatidic acid; and scanning the patient using diagnostic imaging to obtain visible images of the region of the patient.