<title>The early study on the inspection of tongue of the traditional Chinese medicine using optical coherence tomography</title>

Abstract

Inspection of tongue is an age-old technique used by Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) practitioners to determine a patient's health status. Because tongue examination is a subjective and inaccurate diagnostic method, a scientific tool which can provide objective and accurate information is needed to assist the TCM practitioners in their practice. The purpose of the study was to examine the feasibility of developing a glossoscopy from an optical coherence tomography (OCT) imaging system. In the present study, an OCT system was used to examine the tongue of the rat. After examination, the tongue was surgically removed, sectioned by a microtome and put on a glass slide for histological examination. The slides were examined under a bright-field microscope. Results of the OCT imaging studies showed that the OCT system was capable of showing the images of three distinct regions of the tongue: the tongue coating layers, the interface between the tongue coating and the tongue body, and the tongue body. It was also possible to assign an index number to each of the coating layers. When the tongue tissue was examined under a microscope, three separate regions of the tongue also were visible. Results of this pilot study shows that the OCT potentially can be developed into a glossoscopy for clinical application in TCM practice.

Quantitative analysis on tongue inspection in traditional Chinese medicine using optical coherence tomography

“…In a previous study, we investigated the feasibility of using an OCT imaging system as a method for glossoscopy, 25 and this method for TI was first presented by comparing the OCT image of the tongue with the histology of corresponding tissue. The aim of this study was to observe the changes in OCT images of the tongues of normal control rats and those with chronic gastritis in vivo and to quantify the TI parameters by detecting the thickness of the tongue coating and the degree of moisture of the tongue and then analyzing the discrepancy between the normal control and model groups.…”

Using Optical Coherence Tomography to Monitor Process of Wound Healing: a Preliminary Study

“…Fig.1 is a schematic of the OCT system used in this study, in which a broadband light source with the central wavelength at 1310 nm, and a bandwidth of 50 nm is used at wavelengths in the therapeutic window [9][10]. The axial resolution of this system is 15 µ m in free space, or approximately 10 µ m in the tissue if the mean refractive index of bulk tissue is assumed to be 1.38.…”