A Novel Imaging Technique to Identify Vocal Fold Scar Formation

Area of Science:

• Biomedical Optics
• Otolaryngology
• Tissue Engineering

Background:

• Vocal fold (VF) scarring diagnosis often requires invasive procedures like operative laryngoscopy.
• Current diagnostic methods lack the ability to accurately differentiate scar tissue from other pathologies.
• There is a need for non-invasive techniques to assess VF scarring and guide treatment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the efficacy of Dynamic Optical Contrast Imaging (DOCI) for non-invasive detection of VF scarring.
• To evaluate DOCI's ability to differentiate between healthy and scarred VF tissue in a rabbit model.
• To establish DOCI as a potential tool for diagnosing and quantifying VF scar formation.

Main Methods:

• A rabbit model was used, inducing unilateral VF cordectomy to create scar tissue.
• Excised VFs were analyzed using a bench-top DOCI system after 2 months.
• DOCI imaging results were validated against histological staining for scar tissue.

Main Results:

• The DOCI system successfully distinguished between healthy and scarred VFs (p < 0.05).
• Effective discrimination was achieved using specific wavelengths: 405 LPF, 440, 460-532, and 560-580 nm.
• DOCI imaging results showed strong correlation with histological assessments of scar tissue.

Conclusions:

• DOCI technology offers a non-invasive, real-time method for discriminating normal from scarred VFs.
• The accuracy of DOCI in identifying VF scarring is comparable to histological analysis.
• This study supports the development of DOCI-based endoscopy for VF scar diagnosis and treatment monitoring.