https://doi.org/10.1051/epjconf/202023804008
Imaging birefringent tissue in the human tympanic membrane by polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography
1 Clinical Sensoring and Monitoring, Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstrasse 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany
2 Otorhinolaryngology, Carl Gustav Carus Faculty of Medicine, Technische Universität Dresden, Fetscherstrasse 74, 01307 Dresden, Germany
* e-mail: svea.steuer@mailbox.tu-dresden.de
Published online: 20 August 2020
Acousto-mechanical properties of the human tympanic membrane mainly depend on the connective tissue in its layered structure. Using polarization-sensitive optical coherence tomography, a depth-resolved imaging technique which provides additional tissue specific contrast, polarization changes of the birefringent layers in the human tympanic membrane were detected. By depicting estimated local retardances, distinguishing different tissue types was possible. This suggests the ability to image pathological alterations of the connective tissue with PSOCT, which extends the conventional diagnostic methods in middle ear surgery.
© The Authors, published by EDP Sciences, 2020
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
