We have previously discovered that near-infrared optical imaging of indocyanine green (ICG) signal and analyzing its dynamics can be applied for measurement of blood perfusion rate and detection of Raynaud’s phenomenon (RP). Especially, RP is closely associated with abnormal vasomotor responses and can progress to tissue necrosis due to excessively sustained vasoconstriction. Therefore, early detecting of RP is one of important implication to prevent tissue damage from peripheral vascular disorders. In the present study, we propose new analysis and scoring method of symmetricity of T_max value of left and right extremities. Moreover, this symmetricity analysis can give further information about microvascular insufficiency. For validation of the proposed method, we tested whether the segmental and paired analysis of T_max value (time-to-peak) of ICG dynamics can be used for sensitive diagnosis of microvascular abnormalities which cannot be detected by conventional methods. From the near-infrared images of diabetes mellitus patients with vascular complications, the trend of asymmetry in T_max value was observed. We assumed that decreasing local blood perfusion by autonomic nerve dysfunction causes the asymmetric T_max value of right and left feet. These results collectively indicate that the proposed method can be used as a useful diagnostic tool for RP or other microvascular disorders.

Date Published: 22 March 2013
PDF: 7 pages
Proc. SPIE 8572, Advanced Biomedical and Clinical Diagnostic Systems XI, 857202 (22 March 2013); doi: 10.1117/12.2002800

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 8572:
Advanced Biomedical and Clinical Diagnostic Systems XI
Anita Mahadevan-Jansen; Tuan Vo-Dinh; Warren S. Grundfest M.D., Editor(s)