In vivo testing of a bioresorbable phosphate‐based optical fiber

Abstract

Optical fibers have recently attracted a noticeable interest for biomedical applications because they provide a minimally invasive method for in vivo sensing, imaging techniques, deep‐tissue photodynamic therapy or optogenetics. The silica optical fibers are the most commonly used because they offer excellent optical properties, and they are readily available at a reasonable price. The fused silica is a biocompatible material, but it is not bioresorbable so it does not decompose in the body and the fibers must be ex‐planted after in vivo use and their fragments can present a considerable risk to the patient when the fiber breaks. In contrast, optical fibers made of phosphate glasses can bring many benefits because such glasses exhibit good transparency in ultraviolet‐visible and near‐infrared regions, and their solubility in water can be tailored by changing the chemical composition. The bioresorbability and toxicity of phosphate glass–based optical fibers were tested in vivo on male laboratory rats for the first time. The fiber was spliced together with a standard graded‐index multi‐mode fiber pigtail and an optical probe for in vitro pH measurement was prepared by the immobilization of a fluorescent dye on the fiber tip by a sol‐gel method to demonstrate applicability and compatibility of the fiber with common fiber optics.

On the Characterization of Novel Step-Index Biocompatible and Biodegradable poly(D,L-lactic acid) Based Optical Fiber

“…Predicting the in vivo degradation rate of bioPOFs based on our in vitro results is challenging though. We can nevertheless refer to [46] which reported on the lower solubility of bioresorbable optical fibers in animal body. The slower degradation was attributed to the encapsulation of the fiber in tissue that limits contact with renewed physiological fluid.…”

Bioresorbable Photonics: Materials, Devices and Applications

“…After the immersion in phosphate buffer saline (PBS) for 10 days, silicon waveguide can be completely dissolved. Podrazky et al utilized phosphate glass fiber as the bioresorbable optical waveguide [73], as shown in Figure 1c. The phosphate-based optical fiber has good transparency and its solubility in water can be adjusted by changing the chemical composition to meet the requirements on the operation period.…”

Sensitive pH Monitoring Using a Polyaniline-Functionalized Fiber Optic—Surface Plasmon Resonance Detector

“…Unfortunately, these sensors are bulky in size, they often exhibit a rather poor performance in both extremes of the pH scale and they also have to be re-calibrated in a discontinuous way [ 4 ]. In recent years, substantial efforts were invested towards the development of optical fiber-based pH sensors [ 4 , 5 , 6 ].…”