Neuroendovascular optical coherence tomography imaging and histological analysis

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Vascular Biology
• Biomedical Engineering

Background:

• Intravascular optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an advanced imaging technique offering high-resolution, in situ cross-sectional views of tissue.
• It utilizes the reflectance of near-infrared or infrared light for imaging intact tissue.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the feasibility of neuroendovascular OCT imaging.
• To compare OCT findings with histological data in non-diseased vessels across animal, cadaveric, and clinical studies.

Main Methods:

• Catheter-based, in vivo endovascular OCT imaging was conducted in porcine carotid arteries and human intracranial arteries.
• Standard endovascular techniques were used for device delivery, with rotational and translational scanning for image acquisition.
• In vivo results were validated against ex vivo OCT imaging and histological examination of harvested tissue segments.

Main Results:

• High-resolution (8 microm) visualization of arterial wall structures was achieved in both animal and human vessels.
• In vivo OCT images closely matched ex vivo images, confirming the device's imaging capabilities.
• OCT findings demonstrated excellent correlation with histological sections, accurately depicting the laminar vascular structure in vivo.

Conclusions:

• Neuroendovascular OCT imaging is clinically feasible and provides high-resolution structural detail of arterial segments.
• Establishing baseline OCT findings in healthy arteries is crucial for interpreting pathological conditions.
• The technique allows for non-excisional neuroendovascular optical biopsies of vascular tissue.