In recent years, several commercial systems relying on picosecond pulses have been introduced into the field of cutaneous interventions. In parallel with this development, a somewhat distinct research prototype also operating in the picosecond regime was described in literature. Albeit both market-available products and the investigational device employ laser beams of nearly the same pulse duration and were reported to cause laser-induced optical breakdown (LIOB), they are different in terms of wavelength, applied fluence, laser beam quality, optical architecture and related focusing optics, resulting in different histomorphological features (such as e.g. lesion size, location, expression of collagen). Understanding the differences between these systems in relation to implications for clinical results raises a need in highlighting the nuances behind interaction of picosecond pulses with biological tissue. To achieve this, we accentuate the interplay of irradiance levels of picosecond pulses in W/cm2 , absorption properties of a target tissue at a wavelength of a light source and resulting interaction mechanisms with biological object. We also relate these nuances to potential consequences for cutaneous interventions.
We report a low-cost optical method with high sensitivity for the quantitative assessment of the gloss of human skin in the low gloss regime relevant for physiological skin gloss conditions. Using Monte Carlo simulations, experiments on gloss calibration standards and in-vivo skin gloss experiments using an optical prototype, we demonstrate the improved sensitivity of the proposed method in the low gloss regime compared to professional industrial and skin gloss measurement devices.
We show the feasibility of short wave infrared spectroscopy combined with tape stripping as a simple and noninvasive method for the analysis of lipids and the degree of hydration as a function of depth in the stratum corneum. The spectroscopic method utilizes differential detection with three wavelengths 1720, 1750, and 1770 nm, corresponding to the lipid vibrational bands that lay “in between” the prominent water absorption bands. The results are compared with other biophysical devices such as Corneometer and Sebumeter.
Skin barrier function relies on well balanced water and lipid system of stratum corneum. Optimal hydration and oiliness
levels are indicators of skin health and integrity. We demonstrate an accurate and sensitive depth profiling of stratum
corneum sebum and hydration levels using short wave infrared spectroscopy in the spectral range around 1720 nm. We
demonstrate that short wave infrared spectroscopic technique combined with tape stripping can provide morequantitative
and more reliable skin barrier function information in the low hydration regime, compared to conventional
biophysical methods.
Skin health characterized by a system of water and lipids in Stratum Corneum provide protection from harmful external elements and prevent trans-epidermal water loss. Skin hydration (moisture) and sebum (skin surface lipids) are considered to be important factors in skin health; a right balance between these components is an indication of skin health and plays a central role in protecting and preserving skin integrity. In this manuscript we present an infrared spectroscopic method for simultaneous and quantitative measurement of skin hydration and sebum levels utilizing differential detection with three wavelengths 1720, 1750, and 1770 nm, corresponding to the lipid vibrational bands that lie “in between” the prominent water absorption bands. The skin sebum and hydration values on the forehead under natural conditions and its variations to external stimuli were measured using our experimental set-up. The experimental results obtained with the optical set-up show good correlation with the results obtained with the commercially available instruments Corneometer and Sebumeter.
Laser induced optical breakdown (LIOB) is a non-linear absorption process leading to plasma formation at locations where the threshold irradiance for breakdown is surpassed. In this paper we experimentally demonstrate the influence of polarization and absorption on laser induced breakdown threshold in transparent, absorbing and scattering phantoms made from water suspensions of polystyrene microspheres. We demonstrate that radially polarized light yields a lower irradiance threshold for creating optical breakdown compared to linearly polarized light. We also demonstrate that the thermal initiation pathway used for generating seed electrons results in a lower irradiance threshold compared to multiphoton initiation pathway used for optical breakdown.
Skin health is characterized by heterogeneous system of water and lipids in upper layers providing protection from external environment and preventing loss of vital components of the body. Skin hydration (moisture) and sebum (skin surface lipids) are considered to be important factors in skin health; a right balance between these components is an indication of healthy skin and plays a central role in protecting and preserving skin integrity. In this manuscript we present inter- and intra-individual variation in skin hydration and surface lipids measured with a home-built experimental prototype based on infrared spectroscopy. Results show good agreement with measurements performed by commercially available instruments Corneometer and Sebumeter used for skin hydration and sebum measurements respectively.
An increasing number of applications, including non- or minimally invasive diagnostics and treatment as well as various cosmetic procedures, has resulted in a need to determine the optical properties of hair and its structures. We report on the measurement of the total attenuation coefficient of the cortex and the medulla of blond, gray, and Asian black human scalp hair at a 633-nm wavelength. Our results show that for blond and gray hair the total attenuation coefficient of the medulla is more than 200 times higher compared to that of the cortex. This difference is only 1.5 times for Asian black hair. Furthermore, we present the total attenuation coefficient of the cortex of blond, gray, light brown, and Asian black hair measured at wavelengths of 409, 532, 633, 800, and 1064 nm. The total attenuation coefficient consistently decreases with an increase in wavelength, as well as with a decrease in hair pigmentation. Additionally, we demonstrate the dependence of the total attenuation coefficient of the cortex and the medulla of Asian black hair on the polarization of incident light. A similar dependence is observed for the cortex of blond and gray hair but not for the medulla of these hair types.
The readings in laser Doppler perfusion monitoring are affected by the optical properties of the tissue in which the
microvasculature is embedded, through their effect on the optical path lengths. Thus for a constant perfusion, the LDF
output signal is affected by the variance in individual photon path lengths due to the changes in tissue optical properties
and probe geometry. We will present efforts to render blood flow measurements independent of the tissue optical
properties by using low coherence interferometry. We will give evidence of the improvement in quantification of our
approach. In particular we show that low coherence interferometry can measure dynamic properties of particles in
Brownian motion, independent of optical properties of the surrounding tissue matrices. Furthermore, demonstration is
given of the applicability of the method in vivo.
The influence of tissue optical properties on laser Doppler perfusion imaging (LDPI) is not well understood. We address this problem by quantifying the dependence of the signal response to tissue optical properties based on speckles or coherence areas and on photon statistics. We investigate the effect in vivo, showing the amplitude of photocurrent fluctuations in normal skin and port-wine stain with a range of beam diameters, and its relation to the speckle size variation difference between these two tissues. For the case of a low concentration of moving particles moving within a static turbid medium, a model is described and applied to predict the influence of speckles on the overall and depth sensitivity of LDPI, for a range of scattering levels and absorption levels. The results show that the speckle related effects on overall and depth sensitivity are large and that the depth sensitivity is highly likely to be misinterpreted without taking the speckle phenomenon into account.
We report the first path-length-resolved perfusion measurements on human skin measured with a phase-modulated low-coherence Mach-Zehnder interferometer with spatially separated fibers for illumination and detection. Optical path lengths of Doppler shifted and unshifted light and path-length-dependent Doppler broadening of multiply scattered light from skin are measured from the Doppler broadened interference peaks appearing in the power spectrum. Perfusion and its variations during occlusion are measured in real time for a given optical path length, and the results are compared with the perfusion signal obtained with a conventional laser Doppler perfusion monitor.
In optical Doppler measurements, the path length of the light is unknown. To facilitate quantitative measurements, we develop a phase-modulated Mach-Zehnder interferometer with separate fibers for illumination and detection. With this setup, path-length-resolved dynamic light scattering measurements of multiple scattered light in static and dynamic turbid media are performed. Optical path length distributions spanning a range from 0 to 11 mm are measured from the area under the phase modulation peak around the modulation frequency in the power spectrum. A Doppler-broadened phase modulation interference peak is observed that shows an increase in the average Doppler shift with optical path length, independent of absorption. Validation of the estimated path length distributions is done by measuring their deformation for increasing absorption and comparing these observations with predictions based on Lambert-Beer's law.
We describe path length resolved Doppler measurements of the multiply scattered light in turbid media using phase
modulated low coherence Mach-Zehnder interferometer, with separate fibers for illumination and detection. A Doppler
broadened phase modulation interference peak observed at the modulation frequency shows an increase in the average
Doppler shift with optical path length. The path length dependent Doppler broadening of scattered light due to the
detection of multiple scattered light is measured from the Lorentzian linewidth and the results are compared with the
predictions of Diffusive Wave Spectroscopy. For particles with small scattering anisotropy, the diffusion approximation
shows good agreement with our experimental results. For anisotropic scatterers, the experimental results show deviations
from the Diffusion theory. The optical path lengths are determined experimentally from the Zero order moment of the
phase modulation peak around the modulation frequency and the results are validated with the Monte Carlo technique.
We report on a theoretical/experimental model to predict the depth sensitivity of laser Doppler perfusion imager. Further
more we show the quantitative influence of speckles on laser Doppler perfusion imager response to scattering at different
depths. The model is based on Monte Carlo simulations and experiments on static and dynamic scattering phantoms
made of polystyrene microspehers. The experimental results are in good agreement with our theoretical predictions. The
results show that the depth sensitivity of the laser Doppler perfusion imager is influenced by the speckles. The effects are
big, especially when a narrow beam is used for measurement. We propose that a correction method should be developed
based on speckle size in order to have a reliable blood perfusion information independent of tissue optical properties.
We show that speckles play an important role in laser Doppler perfusion imaging. The influence of speckles on the signal amplitude and the Doppler spectrum is demonstrated experimentally on particle suspensions with different scattering levels and varying beam width. Polystyrene microsphere suspensions with known optical properties are used to make scattering samples. A theoretical model is explained to calculate the speckle size from the back scattered intensity distributions. The coherence area is calculated with Monte Carlo simulations on different scattering samples and experiments are performed to validate our theoretical model. The experimental results are in good agreement with our theoretical predictions.
We report the development of non-invasive, path length resolved Doppler measurements of the multiply scattered light in turbid media, for different absorptions using phase modulated Mach-Zehnder low coherence interferometer, with separate fibers for illumination and detection. A Doppler broadened phase modulation interference peak is observed that shows an increase in the average Doppler shift with optical path length, independent of absorption. The estimated path length distributions indicate suppression and narrowing for increasing absorption and can be related by Lambert-Beer's law.
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