Optical coherence tomography

A high-resolution spectral-domain OCT scan (3×3 mm) of a dry age-related macular degeneration eye showing geographic atrophy and drusen in macula on both cross-sectional and en face fly-through.

Optical coherence tomography (OCT) is an imaging technique that uses interferometry with short-coherence-length light to obtain micrometer-level depth resolution and uses transverse scanning of the light beam to form two- and three-dimensional images from light reflected from within biological tissue or other scattering media. Short-coherence-length light can be obtained using a superluminescent diode (SLD) with a broad spectral bandwidth or a broadly tunable laser with narrow linewidth. The first demonstration of OCT imaging (in vitro) was published by a team from MIT and Harvard Medical School in a 1991 article in the journal Science.[1] The article introduced the term "OCT" to credit its derivation from optical coherence-domain reflectometry, in which the axial resolution is based on temporal coherence.[2] The first demonstrations of in vivo OCT imaging quickly followed.[3][4][5]

The first US patents on OCT by the MIT/Harvard group described a time-domain OCT (TD-OCT) system.[6][7] These patents were licensed by Zeiss and formed the basis of the first generations of OCT products until 2006. Tanno et al. obtained a patent on optical heterodyne tomography (similar to TD-OCT) in Japan in the same year.[8]

In the decade preceding the invention of OCT, interferometry with short-coherence-length light had been investigated for a variety of applications.[9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20] The potential to use interferometry for imaging was proposed,[20] and measurement of retinal elevation profile and thickness had been demonstrated.[19]

The initial commercial clinical OCT systems were based on point-scanning TD-OCT technology, which primarily produced cross-sectional images due to the speed limitation (tens to thousands of axial scans per second). Fourier-domain OCT became available clinically 2006, enabling much greater image acquisition rate (tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands axial scans per second) without sacrificing signal strength. The higher speed allowed for three-dimensional imaging, which can be visualized in both en face and cross-sectional views. Novel contrasts such as angiography, elastography, and optoretinography also became possible by detecting signal change over time. Over the past three decades, the speed of commercial clinical OCT systems has increased more than 1000-fold, doubling every three years and rivaling Moore's law of computer chip performance. Development of parallel image acquisition approaches such as line-field and full-field technology may allow the performance improvement trend to continue.

OCT is most widely used in ophthalmology, in which it has transformed the diagnosis and monitoring of retinal diseases, optic nerve diseases, and corneal diseases. It has greatly improved the management of the top three causes of blindness – macular degeneration, diabetic retinopathy, and glaucoma – thereby preventing vision loss in many patients. By 2016 OCT was estimated to be used in more than 30 million imaging procedures per year worldwide.[21]

OCT angioscopy is used in the intravascular evaluation of coronary artery plaques and to guide stent placement.[22] Beyond ophthalmology and cardiology, applications are also developing in other medical specialties such as dermatology, gastroenterology (endoscopy), neurology, oncology, and dentistry.[23][24]

  1. ^ Huang D, Swanson EA, Lin CP, Schuman JS, Stinson WG, Chang W, et al. (November 1991). "Optical coherence tomography". Science. 254 (5035): 1178–1181. Bibcode:1991Sci...254.1178H. doi:10.1126/science.1957169. PMC 4638169. PMID 1957169.
  2. ^ Youngquist RC, Carr S, Davies DE (March 1987). "Optical coherence-domain reflectometry: a new optical evaluation technique". Optics Letters. 12 (3): 158–160. Bibcode:1987OptL...12..158Y. doi:10.1364/ol.12.000158. PMID 19738824.
  3. ^ Izatt JA, Hee MR, Huang D, Fujimoto JG, Swanson EA, Lin CP, Shuman JS, Puliafito CA (1993-06-24). Parel JM, Ren Q (eds.). "Ophthalmic diagnostics using optical coherence tomography". Ophthalmic Technologies III. 1877. SPIE: 136–144. Bibcode:1993SPIE.1877..136I. doi:10.1117/12.147520. S2CID 121094027.
  4. ^ Swanson EA, Izatt JA, Hee MR, Huang D, Lin CP, Schuman JS, et al. (November 1993). "In vivo retinal imaging by optical coherence tomography". Optics Letters. 18 (21): 1864–1866. Bibcode:1993OptL...18.1864S. doi:10.1364/ol.18.001864. PMID 19829430.
  5. ^ Fercher AF, Hitzenberger CK, Drexler W, Kamp G, Sattmann H (July 1993). "In vivo optical coherence tomography". American Journal of Ophthalmology. 116 (1): 113–114. doi:10.1016/s0002-9394(14)71762-3. PMID 8328536.
  6. ^ US 5321501A, Swanson EA, Huang D, Fujimoto JG, Puliafito CA, "Method and apparatus for optical imaging with means for controlling the longitudinal range of the sample", issued 1994-06-14 
  7. ^ US 5459570A, Swanson EA, Huang D, Fujimoto JG, Puliafito CA, "Method and apparatus for performing optical measurements", issued 1995-10-17 
  8. ^ JA 2010042, Tanno N, Ichikawa T, Saeki A, "Lightwave Reflection Measurement", published 1990 
  9. ^ Eickhoff W, Ulrich R (November 1981). "Optical frequency domain reflectometry in single-mode fiber". Applied Physics Letters. 39 (9): 693–695. Bibcode:1981ApPhL..39..693E. doi:10.1063/1.92872. ISSN 0003-6951.
  10. ^ Gillard CW, Buholz NE (1983). "Progress In Absolute Distance Interferometry". Optical Engineering. 22 (3): 348–353. Bibcode:1983OptEn..22..348G. doi:10.1117/12.7973117. ISSN 0091-3286.
  11. ^ Fercher AF, Roth E (1986-09-15). "Ophthalmic Laser Interferometry". In Mueller GJ (ed.). Optical Instrumentation for Biomedical Laser Applications. Vol. 0658. SPIE. p. 48. Bibcode:1986SPIE..658...48F. doi:10.1117/12.938523. S2CID 122883903. {{cite book}}: |journal= ignored (help)
  12. ^ Youngquist RC, Carr S, Davies DE (March 1987). "Optical coherence-domain reflectometry: a new optical evaluation technique". Optics Letters. 12 (3): 158–160. Bibcode:1987OptL...12..158Y. doi:10.1364/OL.12.000158. PMID 19738824.
  13. ^ Takada K, Yokohama I, Chida K, Noda J (May 1987). "New measurement system for fault location in optical waveguide devices based on an interferometric technique". Applied Optics. 26 (9): 1603–1606. Bibcode:1987ApOpt..26.1603T. doi:10.1364/AO.26.001603. PMID 20454375.
  14. ^ Kachelmyer AL (1989-02-18). Becherer RJ (ed.). "Range-Doppler Imaging Waveforms And Receiver Design". Laser Radar III. 0999. SPIE: 138–161. Bibcode:1989SPIE..999..138K. doi:10.1117/12.960231. S2CID 110631959.
  15. ^ Fercher AF, Mengedoht K, Werner W (March 1988). "Eye-length measurement by interferometry with partially coherent light". Optics Letters. 13 (3): 186–188. Bibcode:1988OptL...13..186F. doi:10.1364/OL.13.000186. PMID 19742022.
  16. ^ Gilgen HH, Novak RP, Salathe RP, Hodel W, Beaud P (1989). "Submillimeter optical reflectometry". Journal of Lightwave Technology. 7 (8): 1225–1233. Bibcode:1989JLwT....7.1225G. doi:10.1109/50.32387. ISSN 1558-2213.
  17. ^ Huang D, Wang J, Lin CP, Puliafito CA, Fujimoto JG (1991). "Micron-resolution ranging of cornea anterior chamber by optical reflectometry". Lasers in Surgery and Medicine. 11 (5): 419–425. doi:10.1002/lsm.1900110506. PMID 1816476. S2CID 19888483.
  18. ^ Hitzenberger CK (March 1991). "Optical measurement of the axial eye length by laser Doppler interferometry". Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science. 32 (3): 616–624. PMID 2001935.
  19. ^ a b Fercher AF (12–16 August 1990). "Ophthalmic interferometry". In von Bally G, Khanna S (eds.). Proceedings of the International Conference on Optics in Life Sciences. Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. pp. 221–228. ISBN 0-444-89860-3.
  20. ^ a b Shinji Chiba; Naohiro Tanno (1991). Backscattering Optical Heterodyne Tomography. 14th Laser Sensing Symposium (in Japanese).
  21. ^ Fujimoto J, Swanson E (July 2016). "The Development, Commercialization, and Impact of Optical Coherence Tomography". Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science. 57 (9): OCT1–OCT13. doi:10.1167/iovs.16-19963. PMC 4968928. PMID 27409459.
  22. ^ Pereira, Vitor M.; Lylyk, Pedro; Cancelliere, Nicole; Lylyk, Pedro N.; Lylyk, Ivan; Anagnostakou, Vania; Bleise, Carlos; Nishi, Hidehisa; Epshtein, Mark; King, Robert M.; Shazeeb, Mohammed Salman; Puri, Ajit S.; Liang, Conrad W.; Hanel, Ricardo A.; Spears, Julian (2024-05-15). "Volumetric microscopy of cerebral arteries with a miniaturized optical coherence tomography imaging probe". Science Translational Medicine. 16 (747): eadl4497. doi:10.1126/scitranslmed.adl4497. ISSN 1946-6234. PMID 38748771.
  23. ^ Wijns W, Shite J, Jones MR, Lee SW, Price MJ, Fabbiocchi F, et al. (December 2015). "Optical coherence tomography imaging during percutaneous coronary intervention impacts physician decision-making: ILUMIEN I study". European Heart Journal. 36 (47): 3346–3355. doi:10.1093/eurheartj/ehv367. PMC 4677272. PMID 26242713.
  24. ^ Fujimoto J, Huang D (July 2016). "Foreword: 25 Years of Optical Coherence Tomography". Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science. 57 (9): OCTi–OCTii. doi:10.1167/iovs.16-20269. hdl:1721.1/105905. PMID 27419359.