Hyperspectral imaging for dermal hemoglobin spectroscopy

It has been shown previously that images collected at selected wavelengths in a sufficiently narrow bandwidth can be used to produce maps of the oxygen saturation of hemoglobin in the dermis. A four-wavelength algorithm has been developed based on a two-layer model of the skin, in which the blood is contained in the lower layer (dermis), while the upper layer attenuates some of the reflection and adds a clutter term. In the present work, the algorithm is compared analytically to simpler algorithms using three wavelengths and based on a single-layer model. It is shown through Monte-Carlo models that, for typical skin, the single-layer model is adequate to analyze data from fiber-optical reflectance spectroscopy, but the two-layer model produces better results for imaging systems. Although the model does not address the full complexity of reflectance of a two-layer skin, it has proven to be sufficient to recover the oxygen saturation, and perhaps other medically relevant information. The algorithm is demonstrated on a suction blister, where the epidermis is removed to reveal the underlying dermis. Applications for this imaging modality exist in dermatology, in surgery and in developing treatment plans for various diseases.