Laparoscopic system for simultaneous high-resolution video and rapid hyperspectral imaging in the visible and near-infrared spectral range

Abstract

Significance: Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) can support intraoperative perfusion assessment, the identification of tissue structures, and the detection of cancerous lesions. The practical use of HSI for minimal-invasive surgery is currently limited, for example, due to long acquisition times, missing video, or large setups. Aim: An HSI laparoscope is described and evaluated to address the requirements for clinical use and high-resolution spectral imaging. Approach: Reflectance measurements with reference objects and resected human tissue from 500 to 1000 nm are performed to show the consistency with an approved medical HSI device for open surgery. Varying object distances are investigated, and the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) is determined for different light sources. Results: The handheld design enables real-time processing and visualization of HSI data during acquisition within 4.6 s. A color video is provided simultaneously and can be augmented with spectral information from push-broom imaging. The reflectance data from the HSI system for open surgery at 50 cm and the HSI laparoscope are consistent for object distances up to 10 cm. A standard rigid laparoscope in combination with a customized LED light source resulted in a mean SNR of 30 to 43 dB (500 to 950 nm). Conclusions: Compact and rapid HSI with a high spatial-and spectral-resolution is feasible in clinical practice. Our work may support future studies on minimally invasive HSI to reduce intraand postoperative complications.

Over 1000 nm Near-Infrared Multispectral Imaging System for Laparoscopic In Vivo Imaging

“…Thus, the analysis of resected digestive tract cancer specimens by NIR-HSI on the serous side is underway. By determining the effective wavelengths for cancer detection, processing techniques such as those used for tissue oxygen saturation may be applied [32,33]. Therefore, laparoscopic OTN-NIR MSI has the potential to enable cancer detection in deep regions during surgery.…”

Feedforward Artificial Neural Network-Based Colorectal Cancer Detection Using Hyperspectral Imaging: A Step towards Automatic Optical Biopsy

“…A further drawback of HSI is the lack of a current laparoscopic system, although a rapid technological development brought about by the new sensor technology has been described recently [ 7 ]. Additionally, HSI has already been integrated in a laparoscopic system and in a flexible endoscope to achieve optical tissue examination probes [ 14 , 16 , 50 ]. The disadvantages of these technologies are that real-time acquisition of high resolution HSI cube analysis has not been implemented yet.…”

“…If real-time acquisition is not required in clinical practice, larger wavelength ranges and high spectral resolutions, like in our study (spectral range: 500 to 1000 nm, resolution: 5 nm), can be used. Such endoscopic HSI technology was described in Köhler et al [ 14 ]. Fast acquisition time for the HSI data (within 4.6 s) was obtained so that our trained model could be embedded with the system.…”

“…The tissue–light interaction generates specific spectral signatures, allowing tissue perfusion assessment and tissue differentiation [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 ]. HSI cameras are highly versatile and easily compatible with existing medical instruments, such as flexible endoscopes, otoscopes, and laparoscopes [ 14 , 15 , 16 ]. In the field of oncology, HSI has been successfully used to detect thyroid and salivary glands [ 17 ], gastric cancer [ 18 ], oral cancer [ 19 , 20 ], breast cancer [ 21 , 22 ], brain cancer [ 23 , 24 ], head and neck cancer [ 25 , 26 , 27 ], tumors of the kidney [ 28 ], as well as colon cancer [ 29 , 30 , 31 , 32 , 33 , 34 ] in humans.…”

Intraoperative hyperspectral label-free imaging: from system design to first-in-patient translation

“…Yet, these are prone to produce motion artefacts due to insufficient imaging speed for a dynamic scene during surgery. More recently, two intraoperative systems based on pushbroom HSI cameras were presented that allow for integration into the surgical workflow: In Mühle et al ( 2021 ), the TIVITA system (Kulcke et al 2018 ) was attached to a surgical microscope to capture in vivo neurosurgery data; in Köhler et al ( 2020 ), a laparoscopic HSI camera was presented and tested using resected esophagus tissue and in Hu et al ( 2020 ) a HSI imaging system was tested during liver cancer surgery. While these systems show potential for seamless integration into the surgical workflow, their restricted imaging speed is likely to remain an inhibitor for adoption during surgery.…”