Laser-induced fluorescence spectroscopy

Lasers have been a part of medicine and surgery since the late 1960s. In the past 5 years, however, there has been growing interest in using lasers as diagnostic devices, an area of research that has been termed optical diagnostics. Optical diagnostic techniques seek to provide diagnostic information about tissue by using light in a probing, yet nondestructive fashion. A large number of optical methods are available to endoscopists, but to date, only laser-induced fluorescence has been investigated in any detail.