Abstract
We have created a 2.5-mm outer diameter integrated photo-acoustic and ultrasonic mini-probe which can be inserted into a standard video endoscope's instrument channel. A small-diameter focused ultrasonic transducer made of PMN-PT provides adequate signal sensitivity, and enables miniaturization of the probe. Additionally, this new endoscopic probe utilizes the same scanning mirror and micromotor-based built-in actuator described in our previous reports; however, the length of the rigid distal section of the new probe has been further reduced to ~35 mm. This paper describes the technical details of the mini-probe and presents experimental results that both quantify the imaging performance and demonstrate its in vivo imaging capability, which suggests that it could work as a mini-probe for certain clinical applications.
Highlights
Photoacoustic endoscopy (PAE) [1, 2] is a novel imaging technique that embodies photoacoustic tomography (PAT) [1, 3,4,5,6,7] in a small probe to image internal organs through intracavitary introduction
These techniques are expected to provide a useful complement to other endoscopic modalities, such as endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) [32, 33], endoscopic optical coherence tomography (OCT) [34,35,36,37,38,39,40], confocal endoscopy [41, 42], and endoscopic polarized scanning spectroscopy [43, 44]
The distal section has a streamlined structure with a dome shaped end for smooth intracavitary advancement, and is sheathed with biocompatible stainless steel and polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic tubes
Summary
Photoacoustic endoscopy (PAE) [1, 2] is a novel imaging technique that embodies photoacoustic tomography (PAT) [1, 3,4,5,6,7] in a small probe to image internal organs through intracavitary introduction. Ultrasound image contrast relies on bulk mechanical properties of tissue, providing limited functional information, whereas PAT’s spectroscopic imaging capability provides a wealth of physiological or functional information, including hemoglobin concentration, oxygen saturation of hemoglobin [8,9,10,11,12], velocity of blood flow [13, 14], temperature [15], pH [16], etc Due to these benefits, PAE [1, 2] and other minimally invasive imaging techniques based on PAT [6, 17, 18] have been intensely developed for applications in such clinical areas as the cardiovascular [18,19,20,21,22,23,24,25], gastrointestinal [2, 26, 27], and urogenital [28,29,30,31] systems. These techniques are expected to provide a useful complement to other endoscopic modalities, such as endoscopic ultrasound (EUS) [32, 33], endoscopic optical coherence tomography (OCT) [34,35,36,37,38,39,40], confocal endoscopy [41, 42], and endoscopic polarized scanning spectroscopy [43, 44]
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