Vascular interventions with optical coherence reflectometry

摘要

There have been many innovations and technological advancements in balloon angioplasty since its introduction in the late 1970's, but percutaneous intervention on a totally occluded artery is still a challenge to the vascular interventionalist. Catheter-based intervention that avoids an invasive surgical procedure is a clear and desired advantage for the patient. A total occlusion challenges the interventionalist because the path of the artery can not be seen in the occluded vessel since the flow of the radiopaque contrast media is blocked. Optical coherence reflectometry techniques have been shown to be able to differentiate between artery wall and occlusive materials allowing the lumen of the blocked artery to be seen inside the occlusion. Light emitting diodes are a critical component of these systems making them technologically possible and economically feasible.