Photoacoustic Remote Sensing Reveals Clues About Cancer, Blindness
As microscopic optical inspection techniques have progressed over the years, they have provided valuable insights into the composition, structure, and function of cells and subcellular structures, transforming the way researchers and clinicians look at human tissues. Today, thanks to the refinement of photoacoustic microscopy, clinicians and researchers can visually assess cellular-level structures and functional information to better understand cancer and inspect the inner workings of living eyes to evaluate the root causes of blinding diseases.
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Hyperspectral Imaging Tracks Blood Oxygen Levels, Aiding in Disease Treatment
The measurement of blood oxygen levels, or oxygen saturation (SpO2), is a critical medical diagnostic parameter. Levels below 95% are considered abnormal and called hypoxemia, or blood oxygen deficiency. This condition is associated with patients suffering from many conditions, including asthma, heart disease, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, anemia, and an obstruction of an artery in the lung due to a blood clot. SpO2 is monitored in patients with these conditions, as well as in patients presenting with life-threatening cyanosis, a bluish-purple discoloration of body tissue.
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Optoacoustic Probe Spots Harmful Plaque Within Blood Vessels
Researchers at Skoltech are a step closer to a working optoacoustic endoscopic probe — a device that could slip inside a blood vessel and analyze atherosclerotic plaques by shining laser light on them and making them vibrate like a speaker membrane. This effect would cause the plaques to betray their chemical composition with an ultrasound signature. The method, if it can be achieved, would prove useful for robotic microsurgeries and medical diagnostic procedures.
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