Revealing structural modifications in thermomechanical reshaping of collagenous tissues using optical coherence...

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Engineering
• Ophthalmology
• Tissue Engineering

Background:

• Infrared (IR) laser irradiation offers non-destructive modification of collagenous tissues like cornea and cartilage.
• Microscopic examination reveals pores post-irradiation but is limited for in situ averaged parameter evaluation.
• Assessing laser-induced tissue changes in real-time remains a challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate Optical Coherence Tomography (OCT) for visualizing and evaluating laser-induced micropores in collagenous tissues.
• To assess averaged micropore properties in situ using OCT-based elastography.
• To correlate OCT findings with traditional microscopic examination for validation.

Main Methods:

• Utilized OCT to visualize tissue dilatation caused by IR laser irradiation.
• Employed OCT-based compressional elastography to measure Young's modulus reduction.
• Combined dilatation and elastography data to evaluate averaged micropore parameters in situ.
• Compared OCT-derived data with high-resolution microscopy results.

Main Results:

• OCT successfully visualized areas of micropore initiation in laser-irradiated cornea.
• OCT-based elastography quantified the reduction in Young's modulus due to micropores.
• Averaged micropore parameters derived from OCT correlated well with microscopic examination.
• Demonstrated significant modulus decrease in the irradiated region, indicative of micropores.

Conclusions:

• OCT, combined with elastography, provides an effective in situ method for evaluating laser-induced micropores in collagenous tissues.
• This approach overcomes limitations of traditional microscopy for averaged parameter assessment.
• The findings support the safe and effective clinical application of IR laser tissue modification technologies.