Optical Coherence Tomography. Towards New Medical Applications

The non-invasive imaging technology OCT (Optical Coherence Tomography) is based on low-coherence interferometry and can enable a three-dimensional representation of organic tissue with close to microscopy resolution. With penetration depths of several millimeters, resolutions of a few microns, real-time scanning rates, and miniaturization opportunities, imaging is a frequently sought-after clinical field. Clinical experts from various disciplines described concrete needs as part of the "Research Alliance OCT for Medicine" FOMed, which can be optimally addressed through the future use of OCT technology. Improved diagnoses, gentler therapies for the patient or the simultaneous acceleration of the surgical workflow are the expected benefits - the potential advantages and the applications in question show the great potential for using OCT in medicine.