Diagnosis of Barrett's esophagus using optical coherence tomography.

OCT is a promising optical technology that permits real-time, high-resolution, cross-sectional imaging of tissue during endoscopy. It has been shown to be a highly sensitive and specific means of identifying the presence of SIM. Preliminary studies suggest that OCT is capable of grading dysplasia occurring within BE and has the potential to assist with the staging of superficial malignancies, particularly squamous cell cancers. In the near future, the capabilities of OCT systems are expected to improve with systems capable of much higher resolution and with Doppler capability becoming available.