In this paper we evaluate whether argon-ion laser induced fluorescence could help to discriminate atheromatous from normal tissue stained with tetracarboxylate ion dyes. Eighteen cadaveric abdominal aortic samples (9 normal, 9 atherosclerotic) from 4 autopsies were obtained in an unfixed state within 12 hours of death. They were incubated in the dye solution for two hours and then they were rinsed in saline for another two hours to ensure that only dye bound to the tissue was present during the experiment. An argon ion laser (476.5 nm) was used for excitation. Fluorescence was collected by a 600 micrometers core diameter step-index UV-visible fiber. The fiber was butt-connected to the 20 micrometers slit of a 0.25 m spectrograph. Data acquisition and analysis were performed via an optical multichannel analyzer. A characteristic increase of the fluorescence signal at the 520 to 560 nm spectral region for atheromatous tissue was observed after treatment of the samples with the dye. This allowed the development of a simple discriminatory index (spectrum integral from 520 to 560 nm vs. spectrum integral from 580 to 620 nm).

Date Published: 23 June 1993
PDF: 8 pages
Proc. SPIE 1878, Diagnostic and Therapeutic Cardiovascular Interventions III, (23 June 1993); doi: 10.1117/12.146591

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 1878:
Diagnostic and Therapeutic Cardiovascular Interventions III
George S. Abela M.D., Editor(s)