Apparatus and Method for Assessment of Interstitial Tissue

摘要

A handheld optical coherence tomography imaging and tissue sampling system and method of imaging and sampling a tissue is disclosed. The method includes inserting a catheter probe into a biopsy needle. The biopsy needle can be attached to a hand-held scanning and sampling device. The biopsy needle is maneuvered to an investigation site. A three-dimensional image of the tissue at the investigation site is captured with the catheter probe.

主权项

1. A method of imaging a sample, the method comprising:
inserting a guidance needle and an optical probe into an investigation site of the sample, the optical probe being positioned within the guidance needle; establishing, using a position sensor, a reference location of the optical probe at a first spatial position at the investigation site relative to the guidance needle; capturing a first optical coherence tomography (OCT) A-line with the optical probe at the first spatial position when the optical probe is moved relative to the reference location; detecting, using the position sensor, a spatial location of the optical probe relative to the reference location during movement of the optical probe within the sample; capturing an OCT A-line with the optical probe at a second spatial position if the reference location and the spatial location are separated by greater than a predetermined threshold value; if the second OCT A-line is captured, determining whether the second OCT A-line is identical to the first OCT A-line; discarding the second OCT A-line if it is identical to the first OCT A-line; and storing the second OCT A-line and the first OCT A-line if the second OCT A-line and the first OCT A-line are not identical.