Multispectral polarization-resolved endoscopy and vision for intraoperative imaging of tissue microstructure and function

现代外科治疗的范例是通过使用小的锁孔端口进入身体并使用内窥镜成像来查看内部来减少手术的侵入性创伤。因此，在临床内窥镜检查中，关于组织特性或功能的信息限于从白色光反射图像可见的颜色和特征，其很好地对应于裸眼视觉，但仅代表可以用现代图像传感器记录的内容的一小部分。正在努力将多光谱（或窄带成像），可见光和近红外荧光，显微镜/共焦模式纳入内窥镜调查。一个经常被忽视的相互作用是偏振光被生物组织散射，它以复杂的方式受到组织的散射和吸收特性的影响。作为偏振分辨相互作用如何在实践中使用的一个简单例子，单次散射的光优先于多次散射的光保持其偏振，这可以作为表面散射的过滤器。去极化效应可用于确定散射体尺寸，从而用于检测癌前病变中发现的增大的核。更复杂的分析需要采集和处理16个图像，允许对去偏振和延迟进行详细分析，特别是通过揭示组织结构特性（例如双折射和结构对准）来检测早期癌症。该项目将开发先进的内窥镜成像方法，以便在手术过程中更好地实时告知外科医生组织结构和功能。基于偏振特性和效应，我们将开发一种新的内窥镜成像设备，该设备将结合联合收割机偏振分辨内窥镜（PRE）的新方法以及计算工具和模型，以了解它可以获取的图像。这将包括偏振光-组织相互作用的蒙特卡罗建模，以及配准、处理和减少诊断所需偏振图像数量的方法。目的是生产一种临床仪器，可用于检测和表征腹膜癌病，一种常见于卵巢癌和结直肠癌的转移性疾病。这需要图像配准、增强和数据简化以及简化的内窥镜硬件。除了这项直接的临床研究之外，还有一系列的筛查和图像引导程序可以通过PRE进行辅助。除了在外科手术中直接应用外，PRE成像模式还将适用于许多其他领域，这些领域被强大的小轮廓成像内窥镜所改变，例如在受限环境中的制造或检查。为了实现这种跨部门的影响，该项目将建立理论知识和强大的软件平台以及硬件和光学解决方案。

The paradigm of modern surgical treatment is to reduce the invasive trauma of procedures by using small keyhole ports to enter the body with endoscopic imaging used to see the interior. In clinical endoscopic investigations, information about tissue characteristics or function is therefore limited to colours and features that are visible from white light reflection images, which correspond well to vision by naked eye but only represent a small part of what may be recorded with modern image sensors. Efforts are well underway to bring multispectral (or narrow band imaging), visible and near infrared fluorescence, and microscopic/endoconfocal modalities into endoscopic investigations. One interaction that is frequently overlooked is the scattering of polarized light by biological tissue, which is affected in a complex way by the tissue's scattering and absorption properties.As a simple example of how the polarization-resolved interaction can be used in practice, light that is singly scattered preferentially maintains its polarization over multiply scattered light and this can act as a filter for superficial scattering. The depolarization effect can be used to characterise the scatterer sizes and thus for detection of enlarged nuclei found in precancerous pathologies. More complex analysis requires 16 images to be acquired and processed, allowing detailed analysis of depolarization and retardance in particular leading to the detection of early cancer by revealing tissue structural properties such as birefringence and structural alignment. This project will develop advanced endoscopic imaging approaches that better inform the surgeon about tissue structure and function in real-time during a procedure.Underpinned by polarization properties and effects, we will develop a new endoscopic imaging device that will combine a novel approach to polarization resolved endoscopy (PRE) together with computational tools and models to understand the images it can acquire. This will include Monte Carlo modelling of the polarized light-tissue interaction and approaches for registering, processing and reducing the number of polarized images required for diagnostics. The aim is to produce a clinical instrument that can be applied in the detection and characterisation of peritoneal carcinomatosis, a form of metastatic disease that is common for ovarian and colorectal cancers. This requires image registration, augmentation and data reduction as well as simplified endoscopic hardware. Beyond this immediate clinical investigation, there are a range of screening and image-guided procedures that may be aided by PRE.As well as having direct applications in surgery, the PRE imaging paradigm will be applicable to many other sectors transformed by powerful, small profile imaging endoscopes, for example manufacturing or inspection in constrained environments. For this cross sector impact to be achieved the project will build theoretical knowledge and robust software platforms as well as hardware and optical solutions.