Multi-contrast laser endoscopy for in vivo gastrointestinal imaging

Area of Science:

• Medical Imaging
• Gastroenterology
• Biophotonics

Background:

• White light endoscopy is the standard for gastrointestinal disease detection, relying on subtle visual cues.
• Subtle differences in tissue color, texture, and shape are often missed, leading to underdiagnosis.
• Advanced imaging techniques are needed to overcome the limitations of current endoscopic methods.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and validate Multi-contrast Laser Endoscopy (MLE) for enhanced gastrointestinal imaging.
• To demonstrate MLE's capability in improving contrast for disease detection.
• To assess MLE's performance in clinical settings.

Main Methods:

• Developed a widefield clinical imaging platform with tunable spectral, coherent, and directional illumination.
• Utilized multispectral diffuse reflectance for chromophore contrast, laser speckle contrast imaging for blood flow, and photometric stereo for topography.
• Validated the system with benchtop models and in vivo during clinical colonoscopies.

Main Results:

• MLE demonstrated enhanced tissue contrast and color difference compared to conventional methods.
• Images of 31 polyps showed an approximate three-fold improvement in contrast and a five-fold increase in color difference.
• The technology was successfully validated in vivo during clinical colonoscopies.

Conclusions:

• MLE offers a promising approach to improve gastrointestinal imaging by revealing multiple complementary tissue contrasts.
• The platform integrates seamlessly into clinical environments, enhancing diagnostic capabilities.
• MLE has the potential to significantly improve the detection rates of gastrointestinal diseases.