A systematic investigation of reflectance diffuse optical tomography using nonlinear reconstruction methods and...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Optics
• Medical Imaging
• Computational Imaging

Background:

• Diffuse optical tomography (DOT) is a non-invasive imaging technique.
• Continuous wave (CW) measurements are widely used in DOT.
• Nonlinear reconstruction algorithms are crucial for accurate DOT image reconstruction.

Purpose of the Study:

• To systematically investigate and optimize nonlinear reconstruction algorithms for CW reflectance diffuse optical tomography.
• To enhance target localization, reduce image noise, improve quantification, and resolve contrast crosstalk in DOT.

Main Methods:

• Utilized continuous wave (CW) measurements for diffuse optical tomography.
• Developed and fine-tuned nonlinear reconstruction algorithms.
• Implemented depth-adaptive regularizations and a logarithm-based objective function.
• Employed transport models for improved reconstruction quantification.
• Evaluated upgraded algorithms using numerical simulations and experimental tests.

Main Results:

• Optimized target localization with depth-adaptive regularizations.
• Reduced boundary noises in reconstructed images via a logarithm-based objective function.
• Improved reconstruction quantification by incorporating transport models.
• Resolved crosstalk between absorption and scattering contrasts.
• Demonstrated enhanced image quality for deep targets in both numerical and experimental evaluations.

Conclusions:

• The upgraded nonlinear reconstruction algorithms show significant potential for advancing CW reflectance DOT.
• Proposed approaches enhance the imaging of deep tissue absorption and scattering contrasts.
• The study provides a framework for improving the performance and reliability of DOT imaging.