Efficacy of Novel Multispectral Imaging Device to Determine Anastomosis for Esophagogastrostomy

Biomedical imaging devices that utilize the optical characteristics of hemoglobin (Hb) have become widespread. In the field of gastroenterology, there is a strong demand for devices that can apply this technique to surgical navigation. We aimed to introduce our novel multispectral device capable of intraoperatively performing quantitative imaging of the oxygen (O₂) saturation and Hb amount of tissues noninvasively and in real time, and to examine its application for deciding the appropriate anastomosis point after subtotal or total esophagectomy.

A total of 39 patients with esophageal cancer were studied. Tissue O₂ saturation and Hb amount of the gastric tube just before esophagogastric anastomosis were evaluated using a multispectral tissue quantitative imaging device. The anastomosis point was decided depending on the quantitative values and patterns of both the tissue O₂ saturation and Hb amount.

The device can instantaneously and noninvasively quantify and visualize the tissue O₂ saturation and Hb amount using reflected light. The tissue Hb status could be classified into the following four types: good circulation type, congestion type, ischemia type, and mixed type of congestion and ischemia. Postoperative anastomotic failure occurred in 2 cases, and both were mixed cases.

The method of quantitatively imaging the tissue O₂ saturation and Hb level in real time and noninvasively using a multispectral device allows instantaneous determination of the anastomosis and related organ conditions, thereby contributing to determining the appropriate treatment direction.