title: Validation of Dynamic optical coherence tomography for non-invasive, in vivo microcirculation imaging of the skin.
abstract: Dynamic optical coherence tomography (D-OCT) is an angiographic variation of OCT that non-invasively provides images of the in vivo microvasculature of the skin by combining conventional OCT images with flow data. The objective of this study was to investigate and report on the D-OCT technique for imaging of the vascular networks in skin as well as to validate the method by comparing the results against already accepted blood flow measuring tools.
  
  
  
  35 healthy subjects were recruited for the multicentre study, consisting of three experiments set up to examine the vascular blood perfusion during different induced physiologic changes in the blood flow. In order to validate the D-OCT images against existing techniques for blood flow measuring we performed consecutive D-OCT, chromametry and laser speckle contrast imager (LSCI) measurements on identical skin sites in all of the experiments. Blinded observer evaluations were performed in order to evaluate the vascular morphology in the D-OCT images.
  
  
  
  The results showed a statistically significant positive correlation between the D-OCT measurements and the LCSI flux measurements (rs=0.494; 95% CI [0.357, 0.615]; p<0.001), and also the redness a* measurements were positively correlated with the D-OCT measurements (r=0.48; 95% CI [0.406, 0.55]). D-OCT was able to reliably image and identify morphologic changes in the vascular network consistent with the induced physiological changes of blood flow.
  
  
  
  This study has initiated validation of the use of D-OCT for imaging of skin blood flow. Our results showed that D-OCT was able to reliably image and identify changes in the skin vasculature consistent with the induced physiological blood flow changes. These basic findings support the use of D-OCT imaging for in vivo microcirculation imaging of the skin.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Zealand University Hospital, Roskilde; Health Sciences Faculty, University of Copenhagen, Denmark. Electronic address: lotte.themstrup@gmail.com.
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Themstrup
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology and Allergology, General Hospital Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Welzel
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Ciardo
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology and Allergology, General Hospital Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kaestle
authors.affiliation: CMB/Collegium Medicum Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ulrich
authors.affiliation: Michelson Diagnostics Ltd., Kent, UK.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Holmes
authors.affiliation: Michelson Diagnostics Ltd., Kent, UK.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Whitehead
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology and Allergology, Ludwig-Maximilian University, Munich, Germany.
authors.forename: E C
authors.initials: EC
authors.lastname: Sattler
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology and Allergology, General Hospital Augsburg, Augsburg, Germany.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kindermann
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia, Modena, Italy.
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pellacani
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Zealand University Hospital, Roskilde; Health Sciences Faculty, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.
authors.forename: G B E
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Jemec
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D005060:Europe; D005260:Female; D064368:Healthy Volunteers; D006801:Humans; D017078:Laser-Doppler Flowmetry; D008297:Male; D008833:Microcirculation; D008875:Middle Aged; D055420:Perfusion Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D012039:Regional Blood Flow; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012867:Skin / Q000098:blood supply*; D013997:Time Factors; D041623:Tomography, Optical Coherence; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Chromametry; Dynamic optical coherence tomography; Laser speckle contrast imaging; Non-invasive imaging; OCT angiography; Skin microcirculation; Speckle variance OCT