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Scanning optoacoustic mesoscopy is aimed at high resolution imaging within a depth range of several millimeters in mammalian tissues, which is highly relevant for diagnosing a variety of microcirculatory disorders. Multispectral imaging further allows for quantifying functional biomarkers, such as blood oxygenation or lipid content, facilitating early detection of conditions like peripheral artery disease, diabetic microangiopathy, or tumor angiogenesis. While conventional system implementations rely on bulky and expensive solid-state laser sources, we report a fully integrated optoacoustic mesoscopy system based on low-cost laser diodes. The proposed multispectral imaging design encloses three laser diodes operating at 753, 805, and 878 nm along with pulse drivers and fiber-coupling micro-optics within a single 22 × 12 × 10 cm³ sized module. The system emits 100 ns duration light pulses at 16 μJ per-pulse energy and is further characterized by a high per-pulse energy stability (0.5% standard deviation). The clinical imaging capabilities of the system are subsequently demonstrated by mapping blood oxygen saturation in the human wrist. This compact, cost-effective platform paves the way for clinical translation of optoacoustic mesoscopy in point-of-care and resource-limited settings.
Liu et al. (Mon,) studied this question.