Urogenital photoacoustic endoscope

Abstract

Photoacoustic endoscopy for human urogenital imaging has the potential to diagnose many important diseases, such as endometrial cancer and prostate cancer. We have specifically developed a 12.7 mm diameter, rigid, side-scanning photoacoustic endoscopic probe for such applications. The key features of this endoscope are the streamlined structure for smooth cavity introduction and the proximal actuation mechanism for fast scanning. Here, we describe the probe’s composition and scanning mechanism, and present in vivo experimental results suggesting its potential for comprehensive clinical applications.

Tutorial on photoacoustic tomography

“…With its multiparameter and multiscale imaging capability, PAT has been applied in many different disciplines, including cardiology, 77,124,125 dermatology, [126][127][128][129] oncology, 130-133 ophthalmology, 67,69,[134][135][136] gastroenterology, [36][37][38]40,[137][138][139][140] hematology, [141][142][143] and neurology. [144][145][146][147] In terms of imaging locations, PAT can be used for human breast imaging [148][149][150] and smallanimal imaging of the brain, 70,151,152 ear, [153][154][155] eye, [134][135][136] liver, 15 intestine, 156 and skin.…”

Early-stage tumor detection using photoacoustic microscopy: a pattern recognition approach

“…To achieve automatic detection of tumors based on our finding, we developed a novel framework based on pattern recognition algorithms, and achieved a tumor identification accuracy of 82.67%. We expect that this new discovery will find more applications, such as tracing sO 2 -based biomarkers in internal organs [7] and the brain in humans [23].…”

Three-dimensional photoacoustic and ultrasonic endoscopic imaging of two rabbit esophagi

“…To make this endoscopic technique more clinically applicable, several technical issues must be resolved. Improving the scanning speed is most important [31][32][33][34]. Development of array transducer-based electronic scanning endoscopic systems [35] would be a promising direction because such endoscopic systems could provide cross-sectional images with a single laser pulse and also would enable a high image frame rate.…”