Birefringence measurements in human skin using polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography

Mark C. Pierce; John Strasswimmer; B. Hyle Park; Barry Cense; Johannes F. de Boer

doi:10.1117/12.529627

13 July 2004 Birefringence measurements in human skin using polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography

Mark C. Pierce, John Strasswimmer, B. Hyle Park, Barry Cense, Johannes F. de Boer

Proceedings Volume 5312, Lasers in Surgery: Advanced Characterization, Therapeutics, and Systems XIV; (2004) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.529627
Event: Biomedical Optics 2004, 2004, San Jose, CA, United States

Abstract

Optical coherence tomography enables cross-sectional imaging of tissue structure to depths of around 1.5 mm, at high-resolution and in real-time. Incorporation of polarization-sensitivity enables the birefringent properties of tissues to be visualized and quantified. We present polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography images and quantitative birefringence analysis of in vivo human skin. From measurements on a sample of 5 human volunteers, mean double-pass phase retardation rates of 0.340 ± 0.143, 0.250 ± 0.076 and 0.592 ± 0.142°/μm were obtained for normal skin at the dorsal hand, temple and lower back regions respectively. Compared to these values measured in normal skin, a reduction in birefringence was observed and quantified in human skin following thermal injury. Conversely, increased birefringence was consistently measured at skin sites following wound healing and repair.

Citation Download Citation

Mark C. Pierce, John Strasswimmer, B. Hyle Park, Barry Cense, and Johannes F. de Boer "Birefringence measurements in human skin using polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography", Proc. SPIE 5312, Lasers in Surgery: Advanced Characterization, Therapeutics, and Systems XIV, (13 July 2004); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.529627

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