Three-dimensional optical coherence elastography by phase-sensitive comparison of C-scans.

Area of Science:

• Biomedical optics
• Medical imaging
• Biophysics

Background:

• Optical coherence elastography (OCE) is a promising technique for non-invasively assessing tissue mechanical properties.
• Traditional OCE methods face limitations in acquisition speed, hindering real-time clinical applications.
• Faster 3D elastography is crucial for advancing in vivo and clinical OCE.

Purpose of the Study:

• To develop and validate a rapid 3D acquisition method for optical coherence elastography.
• To achieve high strain sensitivity and contrast in 3D elastograms with significantly reduced acquisition times.
• To assess the potential of the new method for clinical translation.

Main Methods:

• A novel compression elastography approach using sequential optical coherence tomography (OCT) volume scans (C-scans).
• Mechanical load is varied between C-scans to induce displacement.
• Voxel-by-voxel phase difference analysis determines axial displacement and local axial strain.

Main Results:

• Demonstrated 3D elastogram acquisition in 5 seconds, an order of magnitude faster than previous methods.
• Achieved sub-100-microstrain sensitivity and high contrast in phantoms and ex vivo rat muscle.
• Performance in strain sensitivity and dynamic range is comparable to existing B-scan methods.

Conclusions:

• The developed 5-second 3D OCE method offers a significant speed improvement for elastogram acquisition.
• This rapid acquisition capability can accelerate the clinical and in vivo translation of OCE.
• The technique provides high-resolution mechanical property mapping suitable for various biomedical applications.