Abstract
In this paper, we demonstrate in vivo volumetric quantitative micro-elastography of human skin. Elasticity is estimated at each point in the captured volume by combining local axial strain measured in the skin with local axial stress estimated at the skin surface. This is achieved by utilizing phase-sensitive detection to measure axial displacements resulting from compressive loading of the skin and an overlying, compliant, transparent layer with known stress/strain behavior. We use an imaging probe head that provides optical coherence tomography imaging and compression from the same direction. We demonstrate our technique on a tissue phantom containing a rigid inclusion, and present in vivo elastograms acquired from locations on the hand, wrist, forearm and leg of human volunteers.
Highlights
Optical coherence elastography (OCE) is a method to image the micro-scale mechanical properties of tissue, requiring three main steps: a mechanical load is imparted to the tissue; the tissue deformation is measured using optical coherence tomography (OCT); and a mechanical model of tissue deformation is utilized to form a map of a mechanical property
The corresponding B-scan and en face micro-elastograms are overlaid on the OCT images (Figs. 3(c) and 3(d), respectively)
These values are of the same order of magnitude as those reported previously for skin [34], and higher elasticity is estimated in the stratum corneum than in the living epidermis, consistent with previous measurements using strain-based compression OCE [21]
Summary
Optical coherence elastography (OCE) is a method to image the micro-scale mechanical properties of tissue, requiring three main steps: a mechanical load is imparted to the tissue; the tissue deformation is measured using optical coherence tomography (OCT); and a mechanical model of tissue deformation is utilized to form a map of a mechanical property (such as Young’s modulus). Surface acoustic waves (SAWs) are introduced to the skin, and the measured phase velocity of the propagating wave is used to estimate the Young’s modulus averaged over a certain propagation distance. An advantage of these techniques is that they can provide a direct assessment of the elasticity of skin [15,16,17], there are many potential complications [18]. SAW methods applied to skin can potentially provide elastograms at depths beyond the OCT imaging depth [16]. These methods have been limited to 1D or 2D measurements of skin, and the lateral resolution has been limited to ~0.5 mm by the wavelength of the propagating wave and the sampling density of the OCT measurement [16, 19]
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