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Diffuse near-infrared imaging of tissue with picosecond time resolution

  • Dirk Grosenick EMAIL logo , Heidrun Wabnitz and Rainer Macdonald
Published/Copyright: March 1, 2018

Abstract

Optical imaging of biological tissue in vivo at multiple wavelengths in the near-infrared (NIR) spectral range can be achieved with picosecond time resolution at high sensitivity by time-correlated single photon counting. Measuring and analyzing the distribution of times of flight of photons randomly propagated through the tissue has been applied for diffuse optical imaging and spectroscopy, e.g. of human breast tissue and of the brain. In this article, we review the main features and the potential of NIR multispectral imaging with picosecond time resolution and illustrate them by exemplar applications in these fields. In particular, we discuss the experimental methods developed at the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB) to record optical mammograms and to quantify the absorption and scattering properties from which hemoglobin concentration and oxygen saturation of healthy and diseased breast tissue have been derived by combining picosecond time-domain and spectral information. Furthermore, optical images of functional brain activation were obtained by a non-contact scanning device exploiting the null source-detector separation approach which takes advantage of the picosecond time resolution as well. The recorded time traces of changes in the oxy- and deoxyhemoglobin concentrations during a motor stimulation investigation show a localized response from the brain.

  1. Author Statement

  2. Research funding: Authors state no funding involved.

  3. Conflict of interest: Authors state no conflict of interest.

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Received: 2017-05-16
Accepted: 2017-12-04
Published Online: 2018-03-01
Published in Print: 2018-10-25

©2018 Walter de Gruyter GmbH, Berlin/Boston

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. Guest Editorial
  3. Optical imaging methods in medicine: how can we escape the plausibility trap?
  4. Special Issue Articles
  5. Diffuse near-infrared imaging of tissue with picosecond time resolution
  6. A compact hyperspectral camera for measurement of perfusion parameters in medicine
  7. LED for hyperspectral imaging – a new selection method
  8. Approaches for calibration and validation of near-infrared optical methods for oxygenation monitoring
  9. Hyperspectral imaging in perfusion and wound diagnostics – methods and algorithms for the determination of tissue parameters
  10. Algorithms for mapping kidney tissue oxygenation during normothermic machine perfusion using hyperspectral imaging
  11. Intraoperative mapping of the sensory cortex by time-resolved thermal imaging
  12. Intraoperative motion correction in neurosurgery: a comparison of intensity- and feature-based methods
  13. Optical molecular imaging of corpora amylacea in human brain tissue
  14. Intraoperative optical imaging of metabolic changes after direct cortical stimulation – a clinical tool for guidance during tumor resection?
  15. Application of optical and spectroscopic technologies for the characterization of carious lesions in vitro
  16. Hyperspectral imaging: innovative diagnostics to visualize hemodynamic effects of cold plasma in wound therapy
  17. Hyperspectral imaging as a possible tool for visualization of changes in hemoglobin oxygenation in patients with deficient hemodynamics – proof of concept
  18. Cardiovascular assessment by imaging photoplethysmography – a review
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