Biomedical Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
Chapter 8
Endomicroscopy
Tomasz S. Tkaczyk
Endomicroscopy is an emerging area encompassing several imaging modalities
starting from wide-field imaging, confocal imaging, nonlinear imaging, optical
coherence tomography, and others; it applies several modern technologies spanning
from new detectors and sources, fiber optics, integrated micromechanical systems,
new fabrication technologies, and biochemical contrasts. Endomicroscopy continu-
ously increases its presence in clinical studies and applications. This chapter will
first provide a brief introduction of endomicroscopy and then focus on design
requirements and system components. This chapter will also discuss its applications
in animal and clinical studies.
8.1
Introduction: Context and Application Needs
Over the last two decades, endoscopic medical diagnostics have benefited from
technological developments in several key components, including fiber-optic bun-
dles, miniature lens systems, and compact high-definition image sensors. Early
endoscopes used coherent fiber-optic bundles to relay an image from the distal
end of the instrument to an external eyepiece for viewing by the physician. In the
1990s, systems became available with a digital camera integrated within the tip of
the endoscope, allowing images to be displayed for viewing on a video monitor.
Endoscopic systems evolved thanks to advances in CCD technology, including
the shift to full color chips in place of sequential red/green/blue illumination with
monochrome sensors, and more recently the emergence of high pixel density sensors
enabling “high-definition” (HD) endoscopy.
T.S. Tkaczyk (
)
Department of Bioengineering, Rice University, Houston, TX 77005, USA
e-mail:
ttkaczyk@rice.edu
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